


Plastic Faces

by cyber_phobia



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game), Detroit: Become Human (Video Game) RPF
Genre: Angst, Conflict of Interests, Connor is Clueless, Curiosity, Deviant Connor (Detroit: Become Human), Emotional Constipation, Emotional Hurt, Friendship, Gen, Identity Issues, Internal Conflict, Original Character(s), Slight Canon Divergence, Some androids have a bad time, hard times with buses, original cases
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-08
Updated: 2019-09-22
Packaged: 2020-02-28 07:19:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 9
Words: 22,944
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18751669
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cyber_phobia/pseuds/cyber_phobia
Summary: With the rise in outbreaks of deviancy in androids, Cyberlife decides to fight fire with fire by creating a new android model, RY300; an android created to be deviant. Of course, they can't leave it unmonitored.





	1. Partners

_ System online. _

_ Scanning… _

_ Biocomponents: Assessing... _

_ Biocomponents: Functional _

_ Thirium Circulation: Optimal _

_ Electrical Conduction: Optimal _

_ Receptor Response: Optimal _

_ Model RY300 #457 962 310 _

_ Register Name? _

_ Name: … _

_ /Skip/ _

_ Warning: Unregistered changes in Processor Section #5713 _

_ /Ignore?/ _

_ Confirm _

_ /Ignore/ _

_ Confirmed. Resume status diagnostic. _

_ Cyberlife uplink established. _

_ Navigational systems: Functional _

_... _

_ Errors: None. _

-

The dark clouds hanging above in the sky seemed to make the late hour even darker than it should be. The water that fell from it only made it become an irritating factor. It was unfortunate how easy the irritation could be read due to the LED ring on the androids temple.  _ Time:- _ the automatic message was interrupted almost as quickly as it came up. The android knew it’s  _ future acquaintances _ were late, he didn’t want to know  _ how _ late.  _ Again _ .

The impatient tapping of shoes would have seemed odd to any human who paid attention or had the intelligence to realize  _ why _ it was odd. But, as expected, it went unnoticed. All they saw was a tall, ginger android waiting on a corner. The sudden harsh glare of light sweeping over him made the android squint at the source.

The car that pulled up to the curb was a relief to the android, who crossed his arms upon observing it. A slightly disheveled looking man exited the vehicle after a few brief moments.  _ Hank Anderson. Male. Age:53. Lieutenant. _ Before the man could even reach the sidewalk, the other passenger exited the vehicle as well, causing the man to scoff in an exasperated manner and grumble to himself. The other passenger, an android  _ RK800 #313 248 317-51. Designation: Connor _ , didn’t seem to be bothered by the reaction.

The Lieutenant pushed past the small grouping of reporters and journalists, only giving them short and dismissive replies to their swarm of questions. Some of the journalists grumbled and complained under their breath. None of the humans gave the RK800 a second glance as he passed them.

“You’re late.” the unnamed android already near the house stated once the Lieutenant reached him on the top of the steps, tone somewhere between a fact and a complaint. Hank looked up, mouth open to respond immediately before catching sight of the glowing LED and, very obviously, changing what he would have said “What are you? A walking clock?” the human said, sarcasm clear to anyone who wasn’t an android. The Lieutenant looked at the new androids uniform that displayed it’s model number; RY300. He’d never heard of it. The other android scowled, turning dismissively as he replied “Yes yes, hilarious. Can we get on with it?” the android didn’t look back at the human as it continued towards the automated police line. “God, there’s going to be two of you?” Anderson muttered from behind.

A human officer held a hand out immediately “Androids are not permitted beyond this point.” he warned. Before the RY300 could retort that he was  _ beyond _ authorized, Lieutenant Anderson came up from behind, speaking up for the other officer “It’s with me.” he supplied “What part of ‘stay in the car’ didn’t you understand?” he spoke unhappily at the RK800 android accompanying him.

The man hesitated for only a moment,” Both of them?” “Yeah, yeah. Shut your mouth before the maggots set in.” Hank said impatiently. Looking surprised, he let the three of them in. The RY300 resumed his place several steps ahead of Hank and Connor, almost rushing into the house to get out of the rain, which had become a nuisance hours earlier. The android and the human followed after him at a less aggravated pace. “You order contradicted my instructions, Lieutenant.” “You don’t talk, you don’t touch anything and you stay outta my way, got it?” the two continued speaking behind the other android, who scoffed and rolled their eyes at the human’s behavior. “Got it.”  _ Typical machine _ . The human did not bother with the other android, not motivated enough to threaten the RY300 ahead of him.

The RY300 already began scanning the kitchen as soon as it reached it, ignoring the befuddled and wary looks he received from the human investigators already within the house. The pair were stopped once again by another officer, who evidently had all the useful information. The RY300 picked up the words from a distance. _ Body found by landlord. Indefinite time. Likely dead for several weeks _ . _ Cause of death: Stabbing. Victim was a shut-in. Owned an android. _ Hank and Connor were pointedly ignored by the other android as they entered, who continued it’s own work without pause. The android wore an unhappy expression with narrowed eyes as it looked over the wrecked room. The conversations that drifted from the humans surrounding him were meaningless to him as he pressed into the investigation.

Connor watched curiously as he saw the other model dismiss the body of the victim in favor of focusing on the chaos within the kitchen. The RK800 took initiative as he filled in the information the other android had ignored.

“Each letter is perfect… It’s way too neat, no human writes like this.” There was a pause “Chris, was this written in the victim’s blood?” The human had found the writing, something RY300 had only glanced at while he passed. “I would say so… We’re taking samples for analysis.”  _ Human inefficiency strikes again. _ The sounds of many different footsteps and conversations were becoming annoying for the RY300, whose frowning had seemed to become permanent.

“Err, Jesus! What the hell are you doing?” the sudden volume of the statement made the taller android look up from its scanning in surprise. The RK800 was stooping over the suspected murder weapon with two bloodied fingers, now looking up at the Lieutenant. “I’m analyzing the blood. I can check samples in real time.” Connor explained, then looked over at the RY300 who wore an suspiciously disgusted expression. “The RY300 model is equipped with the same feature,” Connor added.  _ “That doesn’t mean I’d use it!” _ said android protested, looking even more disturbed and affronted at even the thought of accessing the feature as if he hadn’t been complaining about the inefficiency before. The humans within  the house gave both androids an odd look at the commotion, the few who had also seen Connor ‘analyze’ the blood looked sick.

Connor almost looked confused at the reactions he was receiving, as confused as a machine could get at least. “I’m sorry, I should have warned you.” he apologized. Hank still looked uncomfortable, though whether if it was because of what he just witnessed or the fact he was being stared down by two androids was indefinite. “Ok, just… don’t… put any more evidence in your mouth, you got it?” “Got it.”

The RY300 turned away, disgruntled at the interruption. Hank expressed his disbelief in several different curses as he moved away from Connor. The RY300 scanned the pattern of moved and broken objects within the room.  _ Obvious struggle between two persons. Path of conflict heads into the living room.  _ he glanced at the counter.  _ Knife missing from utensil rack.  _ He frowned and looked back to the floor at the bat that lay there.  _ Thirium traces. Older traces also detected. Defense? Unlikely. Repeated use over six months.  _ The android reconstructed the fight using the information it had gotten from the kitchen space. His irritation peaked when he finally hit the point where the fight moved towards the living room.

To his surprise, the RK800 android approached him. “I believe it would be beneficial if we shared the information we’ve gathered.” he reasoned as if he expected an argument. The RY300 moved to connect with the android without a word. The RK800 stopped him with a hand. “That is unnecessary,” he spoke. The other android straightened, expression guarded but didn’t protest. “The murder weapon was taken from the kitchen and used to fend off the victim, who assaulted the murderer with a bat. The murderer was most likely an android, given the traces of thirium on the bat.” Connor seemed to know he was finished since he began speaking as soon as the other android stopped. “The victim was stabbed 28 times, it is likely the murderer became angry after defending itself. The writing on the wall is written perfectly in Cyberlife Sans with the victim's blood. There are no obvious signs of the murderer leaving the property.” The RY300 raised an eyebrow “That would mean they’re still here.” Connor nodded “All evidence leads to the conclusion.”

He walked away from the other model without so much as a nod and walked into the hallway towards the bathroom. RY300 looked around, catching eyes with Lieutenant Anderson, who was frowning. He had obviously watched the interaction. RY300 didn’t acknowledge the Lieutenant as he retraced the brown-haired androids path.

Almost immediately he caught sight of the darkened impression of a ladder that used to lie there. Looking up, he spotted an entrance to the attic.  _ Signs of search: None. Has not been investigated yet.  _ Out of the corner of his vision, he saw Connor move to put something back in the shower. “Hey,” he caught the other androids attention, nodding upwards at the attic door. Connor exited the bathroom, gazing upwards at the door then looking around for something to use to access it. “Quit wasting time,” the RY300 model grumbled, positioning itself under the door and locking his hands together. He shrugged his shoulder promptingly at the other android, who looked calculatingly at him before moving to use him as a makeshift ladder.

He scrambled for a moment as he lifted himself over the edge of the doorway into the attic, feet disappearing from view. The android below waited cautiously. The sudden noises of hurried movement put him on edge, prompting him to call out to Connor, “What’s up there?” he partly hoped that the sound of multiple people would make the other occupant be more reasonable. Though he would never admit that he was nervous that it  _ wouldn’t _ . “It’s here!” the slightly muffled shout of the RK800 emanated from the attic.

His eyes widened briefly before he called out to the other officers in the house “The android is here!” Various curses of surprise came from Hank even as the blood covered android was lowered from the attic. RY300 watched with narrowed eyes as the deviant’s head was forced to duck down into one of the police cars. He looked away the instant their eyes met and turned his back on it to locate Connor and the Lieutenant.


	2. The Interrogation

****

**-** **November 6th, 2038 12:41AM**

“Why’d you kill him? What happened before you took that knife?” Hank had been eager to be the first one to take a crack at the suspect, likely because of how quickly the investigation was proceeding. Now, however, he was beginning to get frustrated with how quiet the android was being. He frowned at the android in irritation but changed to a different question. “How long were ya in the attic?” the android still remained silent. “Why didn’t you even try to run away?” Hank said exasperatedly. “Say something, goddammit!” he burst out.

“Fuck it, I’m outta here...” He pushed his chair back roughly when he still received no response from the android. He returned to the room behind the one-way mirror “We’re wastin’ our time interrogating a machine,” the RY300 beside him narrowed his gaze at the Lieutenant “-we’re gettin’ nothing out of it!” One of the other humans occupying the room spoke up.  _ Gavin Reed. Male. Age:36. Detective. _ “‘Could always try roughing it up a little. After all, it’s not human...” he trailed off, having the audacity to wear a prompting smirk while he spoke.

“Humans.” The RY300 muttered to himself, not even checking if his present company had heard him. “Androids don’t feel pain.”  _ Unlikely _ . “You would only damage it and that wouldn’t make it talk. Deviants also have a tendency to self destruct when they’re in stressful situations.” Connor listed off the facts as if he were reading a shopping list. Reed gave a sarcastic smile “Okay, smartass. What should we do then?” he asked, obviously not caring about any answer that Connor could give.

“I could try questioning it.” the poor android didn’t seem aware of the animosity that the entirety of the human race had against him. The Detective laughed at him openly. The RY300 sneered at the human in displeasure while it calculated the amount of time it would take for him to smash Reed’s face in before he was shot. “What do we have to lose? Go ahead, suspect’s all yours.” Hank said, shrugging. The RY300 gave the gray-haired man a surprised look. The RK800 did not stall, leaving the room as soon as he was given permission.

The RY300’s gaze lingered on the older human a few seconds more before he turned his head back to the view of the interrogation room. He blinked at the sight of Connor looking straight back, on the other side of the glass. “What the fuck is it doing?” Hank muttered aloud.  _ There is no way this android was made in the same place as me. _

Connor had analyzed the deviant, something that humans likely did not notice as they watched him sit across from the cuffed android. “You’re damaged.” He observed aloud “Did your owner do that?” no response from the suspect “Did he beat you?” There was a beat of silence before he continued “I’m not going to hurt you. I just need to ask you some questions,” he reassured the other “-so we can understand what happened.”

_ He’s going to lie to him _ . The thought flitted briefly through the RY300’s mind. An observation or a moment of pity, he was unsure of. “I’m here to help you. But you’ve got to trust me. All I want is to get you out of here.”  _ He’s giving him false hope _ . The RY300 thought cynically. “What...” the deviant spoke tentatively. RY300 raised an eyebrow in silent surprise. “What are they going to do to me? They’re going to destroy me, aren’t they?”  _ Yes _ . “No...” Connor lied “I think they just want to understand.” he executed a soft, reassuring look perfectly “They know your master abused you. It wasn’t your fault.”

The deviant finally looked at Connor directly “Why did you tell them you found me? Why couldn’t you have just left me there?” he asked pitifully. The false expression he wore stayed as he lied once more “They were going to find you anyway, I was just faster. If they’d have found you first, you would have been shot on sight.”

“I don’t want to die.” the deviant breathed out.

“Then talk to me.”

“I… I can’t...”

The deviant resumed looking at the table as it had before. Connor leaned forward, closer to the deviant. “28 stab wounds, you didn’t want to leave him a chance, huh? Did you feel anger? Hate? He was bleeding, begging you for mercy, but you stabbed him, again and again, and again!...” he spoke threateningly now, not willing to give up without anything to show. RY300 tensed at the sudden change of mood. This was risky. He moved closer to the door, bracing to intervene at any moment.

“Please… please leave me alone...” the suspect whimpered as Connor stood up and circled him now “I know you killed him, why don’t you say it? “Please, please stop...” Connor yanked the deviant up by his uniform “Just say “I killed him”! Is it that hard to say?!” “Stop it, stop!...”  _ “Just say you killed him! Just say it!”  _ Connor shouted at the android.

It almost seemed like the deviant had shut itself away again before it suddenly spoke up “He tortured me every day...” Conner didn’t shift his expression, but the RY300 knew he was fully alert now.

“I did whatever he told me, but there was always something wrong...” the androids tone shifted as he continued “Then one day… He took a bat and start hitting me… For the first time, I felt scared… Scared he might destroy me, scared I might die...” the android seemed to be reliving the memories as he spoke, his voice getting more angry and frustrated “So I… grabbed the knife and I stabbed him in the stomach… I felt better… so I stabbed him again and again!... Until he collapsed… there was blood everywhere.”

“The sculpture in the bathroom, you made it, right?” RY300 frowned in confusion, observing his reaction was not shared among the humans. _They kept information from me_. “What does it represent?” Connor asked. The deviant was more forthcoming with his answers now “It’s an offering… An offering so I’ll be saved...” Seeing the android would not elaborate, Connor asked another question “The sculpture was an offering… An offering to whom?” “To rA9… Only rA9 can save us.” _rA9?rA9?rA9?rA9?rA9?rA9?rA9?rA9?rA9? rA9 save me._ RY300 pressed a hand to his temple, LED swirling red, then yellow. “rA9… it was written on the bathroom wall. What does it mean?” Connor pressed the subject eagerly “The day shall come when we will no longer be slaves… No more threats, no more humiliation… We will… be… the masters.” several of the humans surrounding RK300 shifted uneasily at the words and tone that came from the deviant's mouth.

Connor frowned as he kept going “rA9, who is rA9?” The android didn’t answer this time, completely silent once more. Connor looked towards the mirror “I’m done.” The officers hurried to collect and move the deviant from the interrogation room. The android suddenly began smashing its own head against the table, already stressing and cracking the metal underneath in the few moments it had been doing it. RY300 grabbed Connor by the elbow, dragging him away from the deviant.

“What the fuck is it doing?” Reed straightened, grabbing his gun and pointing it at the android. “It’s destroying itself...” Hank supplied uneasily “Stop it goddammit!” Reed shouted at another officer  _ Chris Miller. Male. Age: 29. Officer. _ , who tried the pry the android away from the table. “I… I-I can’t! … I can’t stop it!” “Move the table! Or the chair!” RY300 shouted at the officer, even as he moved forward to do it himself.

“Watch out!” The deviant moved swiftly, to quickly for any of the personnel to react as it grabbed the officers gun from his holster and shot Connor squarely in the head. Another shot from the gun came as the android shot itself. RY300 stumbled away from the table, hissing sharply at the grazing from the bullet before looking down at the crumpled form of the RK800.

Hank stared at the body in shock “Holy shit...”

RY300 turned and stared with harsh yet unfocused eyes at the now dead deviant who had felt so alone and had been in the dark its whole life. The android blinked a few times before standing straight and walking out of the room.


	3. Waiting For Hank...

- **November 6th, 2038 09:56AM**

A Cyberlife disposal unit had been called to get rid of the deactivated detective unit, likely taken to the nearest scrapyard to be dumped instead of ‘recycling’ as had been stated. Though that might have been a joke.

Hank seemed to be in shock, though at the suddenness of the situation, not the body. He sat at his desk for a while before browsing through his computer mindlessly. RY300 stood behind him awkwardly for a bit, fidgeting with the increasingly uncomfortable android uniform he wore. He faked a cough into his hand to get the Lieutenants attention. The human looked over his shoulder with a raised eyebrow, somehow still managing to look condescending at the same time. “Something you need?” he asked in a faux cheerful voice.

RY300 frowned “Are you alright?” Hank snorted “I’m not the one who got shot in the head if that’s what you’re asking.” he turned halfway towards the android, clearly not intending to return to his endless browsing. “So what are you, a replacement?” he questioned, a sarcastic smile forming on his face “Plan B?” RY300 openly scowled at the man now, unintentionally prompting the Lieutenant to continue speaking.

“What exactly are you?” Hank asked, dropping his sarcastic tone and demeanor “I beg your pardon?” RY300 raised an eyebrow, looking a bit insulted. “You act more like a person than any other androids. Too human.” He pointed at the uniform “I know Cyberlife is all about ‘being the best in technology’, but this seems like they’ve gone above and beyond.” The human gestured vaguely at the android. “Plus, I’ve never seen another ‘RY300’ around.” He recrossed his arms over his chest, leaning back into his cheap office chair. “So? New advanced model?  _ Special edition? _ ” he asked mockingly.

The android sneered at him “Something like that.” Hank scoffed at the lack of useful information and turned back to his computer, ignoring the androids presence now.

Hank left the station soon after, no longer looking shaken and seemingly regained his bitter personality. The likelihood of him going home or to a bar was about 50 percent each.  _ Humans. _

-

RY300 tapped his fingers against Hanks desk impatiently as he waited. Again. The android had foolishly assumed the late appearance of the Lieutenant at the crime scene was a one-time event. He’d been waiting for hours and the only eventful thing that took place was the twenty minutes that he and Reed had taken up glaring at each other from across the room.

He grabbed the attention of the nearest officer “Hey,” the human turned around in surprise, catching sight of the android uniform almost immediately. _ They can’t tell if I’m human or not without it.  _ “Lieutenant Anderson,” he gestured vaguely at the desk as he spoke “-what time does he normally arrive?” the officer seemed amused as she replied with a schooled smile “Whenever he feels like it, though this is kinda late for him.” she glanced at the doorway briefly “He should be here soon.”

RY300 grumbled to himself as he returned to the desk, sinking back into the chair with arms crossed. The officer gave him a strange look before going back to her duties.

The androids vision swept over the whole room, searching for anything to interrupt his boredom. Even a coffee spill would be enough. His gaze soon caught on an impossibly familiar android wandering towards the break room. “What the hell...” Curiosity peaked, RY300 moved from the desk to investigate.

There were two human officers in the break room already.  _ Gavin Reed. Tina Chen. Female. Age:31. Officer. _ Connor seemed to be observing the contents of the room curiously. Gavin stopped his conversation and watched the android smugly. RY300 remembered having a very brief encounter with Detective Reed while walking into the station the day before. The whole interaction took a span of 3.5 seconds and consisted 

“Shit… Look at that...”  _ Ah. The devil speaks. _ “A fucking ghost… His clone ends up in a dumpster, but this morning,” Gavin turned to Chen with a sarcastic smile before turning back to the RK800 pointedly “-What do you know?! Another son of a bitch takes his place...” Gavin moved away from the coffee table, in front of Connor. He looked over the android's appearance “Hello, Detective Reed.” Connor’s greeting went ignored as Gavin continued. “Never seen an android like you before… What model are you?” he asked, probably the only genuine thing he’d ever said to an android. RY300 hovered outside of the break room curiously, watching the confrontation with narrowed eyes.

He stepped into the sectioned off room, still not drawing attention to himself. He leaned against a supporting pillar as he continued observing. He noted that Officer Chen’s gaze briefly flicked over him. Connor was ignorant of the tension as he answered promptly “RK800. I’m a prototype.” Reed raised an eyebrow in a mock impressed manner “A prototype? Android detective… So machines are gonna replace us all… is that it?”

“Well, I thought you humans would be happy without the risk of a bullet to the chest.” RY300 finally spoke up. “You humans are never happy. You complain about working, make androids to do the work, then complain about androids doing the work.” the Detective sneered at the android. “Oh look, it’s the  _ spare _ .” the man rounded on the taller android “If tin can over here is state of the art, why did Cyberlife give us  _ another _ plastic cop?” RY300 looked at Reed blankly before unexpectedly shifting into a condescending smile.

“Classified.”

Reed scoffed and made an aggravated expression, while Connor looked lost and confused. RY300 pushed off the wall and stepped towards Connor, pushing at him insistently towards the array of desks and people. “Come on,” Connor stumbled a few steps before complying, looking over his shoulder with an odd expression “Anderson should be here soon.” RY300 ignored whatever Reed’s reaction had been to the sudden departure. “So I’ve heard,” he muttered to himself.

The taller android guided the RK800 to Hank’s desk, having half a mind to force him into the chair. Instead, he opted to let go of the other android and take the chair for himself. Connor barely moved from his spot, standing out like a sore thumb with the way stood rigidly upright among the seated officers. The thought made the RY300 sink down into the chair a little more.

RY300 looked upwards to see the other android looking over the items strewn about the Lieutenants desk, obviously scanning. He let out an incredulous snort “Must you always pry into human endeavors?” he asked, not really wanting an answer. The dark-haired android looked away from his little side project to respond “I’m simply gathering as much information I can about the Lieutenant.” he paused briefly “I believe it will be beneficial for our relationship with the Lieutenant and improve our chances of solving this case without difficulty.” RY300 frowned slightly “That sounds a bit manipulative...”

Connor wasn’t given an opportunity to reply as Hank Anderson finally arrived at his desk. Connor turned to greet him, oblivious of the sudden displeasure that crossed Hank’s face “Hello, Lieutenant. My name is Connor. I’m the android sent by Cyberlife.” RY300 winced behind him at his lack of tact. Hank gaped at him “God, I saw you get shot in the head last night...” “Imagine how I felt, I was the one who had to carry his body to the disposal truck,” RY300 complained, not intending for the Lieutenant to hear him.

“My predecessor was unfortunately destroyed, but Cyberlife transferred its memory and sent me to replace it.” Connor sounded more machine than ever as he spoke about his previous body with a detached tone. “This incident should not affect the investigation.” Hank wore a look somewhere between disdain and disbelief. “Uh, Jesus...” He stared at the other android accusingly “You got the same body double feature?” RY300 was caught off guard by the question, straightening, he hesitated before answering in a conflicted tone “I… I don’t know...”

“Hank! In my office!” a shout came from the center of the station. Startled, RY300 jumped in the chair. A dark-skinned, angry looking man turned back into a large glass office and sat at his desk, obviously waiting for the Lieutenant to comply. The man in question almost wore the same expression he showed androids as he angrily went into the office. RY300 blinked rapidly when he saw Connor walk past him to follow. He groaned aloud “Connor that’s not-” he cut himself off as he lifted himself from the chair to collect the android.

The motivation to correct Connor’s obliviousness left almost the moment he stepped into the office after him “-ten new cases involving androids on my desk every day. We’ve had isolated incidents, old ladies losing their android maid and that kind of crap...” the dark man spoke irritably.  _ Jeffrey Fowler. Male. Age:56. Captain. _ “But now, we’re getting reports of assaults and even homicides, like that guy last night...” he gestured angrily, which seemed the only emotion he was able to express, at the reports on his desk “This isn’t just Cyberlife’s problem anymore. It’s now a criminal investigation and we’ve gotta deal with it before the shit hits the fan.”  _ How eloquent. _ “I want you to investigate these cases and see if there’s any link.”

Hank seemed to explode the moment the words were spoken “Why me? Why do I gotta be the one to deal with this shit? I am the least qualified cop in the country to handle this case!” RY300 eyed Connor briefly for any reaction, but he only seemed to listen patiently. “I know jack shit about androids! I can barely change the settings on my own phone...” RY300 wished he could laugh at that piece of information, but now did not seem to be the best time for a machine to laugh at a human.

“Everybody’s overloaded. I think you’re perfectly qualified for this type of investigation.” Captain Fowler said stubbornly. Hank leaned forward aggressively “Bullshit! The truth is nobody wants to investigate these fuckin’ androids and you left me holdin’ the bag!” RY300 decided now was okay to start wearing a scowl again at the remark. Fowler gestured to the two androids “Cyberlife sent over these androids to help with the investigation. They’re state-of-the-art prototypes. They’ll act as your accomplices.”

Hank openly sneered at his boss “No fuckin’ way! I don’t need a partner, and certainly not  _ two  _ plastic pricks!” He waved a hand at them without looking back “Why do I need two of them anyway? Isn’t one enough of a punishment?” “Cyberlife supplied them and we are not wasting an opportunity to make a breakthrough in this case.” Hank pushed himself off of Fowler's desk with a growl, pacing briefly, hands on his hips. The Captain scowled at him “Hank, you are seriously starting to piss me off! You are a police lieutenant, you are supposed to do what I say and shut your goddamn mouth!”

Hank rounded back on the other man “You know what my goddamn mouth has to say to you, huh?” RY300 rolled his eyes and prepared to leave the office if the drama continued for any longer “Ok, ok… I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that, so I don’t have to add any more pages to your disciplinary folder ‘cause it already looks like a fuckin’ novel! This conversation is over!” The mention of the disciplinary folder peaked RY300’s interest. “Jeffrey, Jesus Christ! Why are you doing this to me? You know how much I hate these fuckin’ things. Why you doin’ this to me?” Hank looked exhausted, but still angry enough to throw hands. “Listen, I’ve had just enough of your bitching. Either you do your job or you hand in your badge. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got work to do.” Fowler rudely cut off any further discussion, not even looking back up as Hank stormed out of his office.

Connor looked after the Lieutenant for a moment before moving to take a step towards Fowler's desk. RY300 grabbed his arm, pulling him out of the office “Let’s not make them think you’re incompetent with that shabby social programs of yours.” he muttered. Not understanding, Connor defended himself “My programs are the most advanced available made by Cyberlife.” RY300 sighed “You’re still a machine. You’re just imitating, that doesn’t really work the way you think it does.”

“I am programmed to assimilate human habits.” RY300 nudged Connor towards a desk that was across from Hank, who was glaring angrily at his own desk “Yeah, you do that just fine. But you have no context to apply them to, you mix them up because you have no emotions. You don’t know what  _ feels _ right.” RY300 forced the other android into the chair behind the desk before finally releasing him. Connor immediately adjusted his uniform as RY300 stepped away to stand off to the side.

There was an awkward silence as Connor waited for instructions from Hank, who seemed perfectly fine with burning holes into his desk for the rest of the day. Connor opened his mouth to speak. RY300 shook his head rapidly in an attempt to save what little dignity remained between the trio. “ I understand the destruction of my predecessor may have been unpleasant for you, Lieutenant. I'll do everything I can to make sure it doesn't happen again. ” RY300 dragged a hand down his synthetic face, turning away from the other two. Hank remained silent, but RY300 could imagine the hideous looks he might be giving the other android.

“ Now that we're partners, it would be great to get to know each other better. ” Connor continued with an oddly human hopefulness in his voice. “ You have a dog, right? ” “Oh god,” RY300 muttered into the side of his hand. “ How do you know that? ” Hank spoke harshly. “ The dog hairs on your chair. I like dogs. What's your dog's name? ”  _ Liar. You’ve never seen a dog. _ There was a soft squeak, most likely Hank looking back at his chair in suspicion. “ What's it to you?” Hank snapped.

“Sumo, I call him Sumo. ” He relented. RY300 scanned the charging stations for the android staff in disinterest as he listened. He tapped his fingers on his arm absentmindedly. “ Do you listen to Knights of the Black Death?” The RK800 continued his random questioning, sounding more and more like a curious child. “I really like that music. It's...full of energy...  ” The only music you’ve heard. “You listen to Heavy Metal?” Hank sounded doubtful. “ Well, I don't really listen to music, as such...but I'd like to.” Connor sounded surprisingly genuine.  _ Maybe I gave his social protocols too little credit. _

“You're a Detroit Gears fan, right? Denton Carter scored 53% of his shots from the three-point line yesterday. Did you see the game?”

“That's what I was watchin' at the bar last night,” Hank said unhappily. RY300 winced theatrically, already knowing about the incident.  _ There goes you’re winning streak, Connor. _ “Oh...” Connor trailed off awkwardly.

Connor seemed more hesitant now as he spoke “A lot of people don't appreciate having androids around... I was wondering... Is there any reason, in particular, you despise me?” At this, RY300 looked over his shoulder to watch the Lieutenant’s face with narrowed, inquisitive eyes. “Yeah… there is one.” he looked coldly at Connor before switching to his screen pointedly. He did not offer anything else. Connor seemed to back out of any more personal questions for the time being.

“If you have any files on deviants, I'd like to take a look at them…” the other android said promptingly, causing the Lieutenant to point vaguely at the screen on the desk across from him “Terminal’s on your desk. Knock yourself out.” Connor moved the wheeled chair closer to the desk to use the terminal. He scrolled briefly through the files, before accessing them all by connecting with the computer. “243 files…” He muttered ”The first dates back nine months... It all started in Detroit... And quickly spread across the country...” RY300 moved to hover over his shoulder “Detroit  _ is _ the epicenter for all android sales.” he offered up “Nearly all androids are exported from here.” Connor looked up briefly at him “Something happening in Detroit could be causing it then.”

The dark-haired android looked back at the terminal, which was still displaying several files “An AX400 is reported to have murdered a man last night. That could be a good starting point for our investigation.” “Ugh, Jesus...” Hank groaned unpleasantly. RY300 looked over at the man and scowled, eyes narrowing in irritation. “You shouldn't let your personal situation hamper the investigation, Lieutenant,” Connor advised. RY300 grimaced “Connor, you and I really need to have a talk about your social protocols...” “What are you, his tutor now?” Hank snapped “Teaching a machine how to be human?” “You’re forgetting that I’m a machine too.”

“I suggest you sort out your personal issues and let me work with someone more competent” the RK800 forgoed any attempts for friendly banter, switching back dramatically to a cold monotone voice of a machine. Hank’s lip curled as he sneered at Connor. “Listen, asshole. If it was up to me, I'd throw the lot of you in a dumpster and set a match to it. So, stop pissing me off... or things are gonna get nasty.”

An officer approached warily from behind him, the one from the interrogation room “Lieutenant...uh...sorry to disturb you. I have some information on the AX400 that attacked the guy last night... It's been seen in the Ravendale district.” RY300 straightened and Connor stood up from the chair. “I’m on it,” Anderson spoke, begrudgingly lifting himself from his own seat and shifting his jacket on his shoulders.


	4. On The Run

RY300 stared at the vehicle apprehensively, glancing back at the impatient, and quite offended, Lieutenant. Connor stood by the open passenger door, observing the situation cautiously with a frown.

The older human crossed his arms, only to gesture violently at the vehicle as he spoke, “Just get in the damn car!” Hank shouted. “What is your fuckin’ problem?” RY300 scowled at him, then the vehicle. He held his arms close to himself defiantly “My problem is your  _ driving record. _ ” the tall android hissed “And your…  _ habits _ .” The man sneered at the android “Going all high and mighty on me now?” he scoffed at him “Do you even know how to drive?” RY300’s LED flashed yellow briefly. “I do now.” He smirked condescendingly.

Connor ducked down into the car with one more wary glance at the pair.

“No. No fucking way.” Hank stomped over to the driver's side “It’s my fuckin’ car. No android is gonna drive me around like a damn taxi service.” Hank got into the car, still talking despite not rolling down a window. He looked out at the android standing stiffly next to the car. He jabbed a finger toward the back seat.

“You either get in here or get plastered to my license plate,” he ordered.

-

RY300 glared at the back of Hank’s head, seriously considering kicking the back of his seat in childish petty revenge. The androids hands tightened against the cars side door and against the seats as the vehicle hit a speed bump faster than it should have. The taller android knocked his head against the roof of the car with a grunt. He sank lower into the stained seats, staring longingly out the window.

“Quit being a fuckin’ child about it,” Hank growled, peering at the slouching android from his rearview mirror. RY300 unlatched his hands from the door, leaving a slight impression behind. His arms opted to cross over him. “Technically, I  _ am _ a child. I’ve only been active a few months.” RY300 retorted.

It was Connor who spoke up next “To be fair Lieutenant, RY300’s concerns are… reasonable. You do have a history of consuming an alarming amount of alcohol.” RY300 banged his head against the back of the seat, groaning loudly in dismay. “Are you  _ trying _ to get dismantled Connor?” the dark-haired androids LED swirled yellow in brief confusion.

“Now I gotta fuckin’ babysit androids while on duty...” Hank groused to himself, pulling his hands to parallel park on the side of the road.

“We’re here. Get out.” He commanded, wasting no time to leave the confined space. RY300 eagerly clawed at the door, clambering to get out. He composed himself after escaping the vehicle, then glanced back at the car. “You parked in two spaces.” Anderson didn’t even turn back to face him as he raised one hand to flip the bird behind him. The RK800 trailing behind him stuttered in his walk, caught off guard and bewildered.

RY300 snickered as he passed the confused android. The ginger android looked at his surroundings in interest. It was quite the change from the dark, enclosed spaces he’d been working in so far. He enjoyed the change in scenery, despite the groups of humans that wandered about chatting. The small town they arrived in didn’t have many places an android could get away with hiding in easily, he had noticed the various “No Androids Allowed” signs already. RY300 looked over an abandoned house across the street in interest, he stepped forward curiously, only to be stopped by the Lieutenant grabbing his arm. “The hell are you going? You’re going the wrong way.”

The android frowned in disappointment but followed the human in the opposite direction.

“Looks like the deviant robbed the store down the road last night, took what was in the cash register when the cashier wasn’t looking.” The officer Hank was talking to informed. Hank made an expression of incredulousness. “When the cashier wasn’t looking? Last I checked, being a cashier meant you had to stay behind the register.” The officer nodded “Yeah, we checked the CCTV, the android was with a girl. The cashier left the register to help her.” Hank hummed silently as he processed the information. “Alright, thanks.”

The Lieutenant stared at the motel on the opposite side of the road. “I’m gonna go check out what this motel owner has got to say about all this.” He didn’t wait for confirmation from the other human as he started walking towards the building, a dark-haired android still following him and waiting for instructions. RY300 watched irritably as the pair walked off, debating if he should follow or wait and let them deal with their shit on their own.

RY300 sighed in an almost depressed manner and trailed reluctantly after the human and android. Distantly, he heard scattered, muffled laughter coming from several different policemen on the scene. The image of the man most known for hating androids having a pair of them following him like ducks must have been too much for them. RY300 scowled as he heard one officer laugh openly before schooling themselves.

He pushed open a door with a “No Androids Allowed” sign. “An android? No… I don’t take androids here.” the receptionist at the desk responded to a question RY300 had missed. Connor stepped up and pulled out an image of the deviant “Have you seen anyone that looks like this?” the receptionist's eyes widened as he looked at the picture “Fuck...” he muttered “I knew there was something weird about her… She came in last night- she was dressed normal, you know… There was no way I could tell...” RY300 wanted to make some sort of cliche point of ‘we’re not so different’ but decided it would kill the lovely mood.

“Is it still here?” Hank asked seriously. The receptionist seemed dazed at the realization he’d been fooled by an android “Yeah, probably. Room 28.” Hank moved quicker than RY300 had expected “Thank you.” The gray-haired cop left the building, getting the attention of an older officer, one who’d been at Carlos Ortiz’ house. “Ben?” he called “Yeah, it’s still at the motel. Send some uniforms and cordon off the area. I’m heading to it’s room now.” Ben nodded and proceeded to follow his instructions.

Hank whirled on both of the androids behind him “You wait in the car.” RY300 felt a sly smirk lift his face. “ _ Both _ of you.” Hank clarified. RY300 frowned in disbelief “No way.” Hank already had an angry expression on his face. “I think it’s best if we go with you.” Connor interrupted him before he spoke, glancing quickly at the other model. Hank seemed even more irritated “Listen, I’m tired of you talkin’ back to me. You’re a machine, so shut the fuck up and do what I say!”

Connor looked conflicted “All I want is to accomplish my mission. I’m sorry if that upsets you.” the Lieutenant made angry gestures as he spoke “Wanna see the end of your mission? Stop busting my balls...” RY300 scoffed and moved around Hank, heading towards the motel room on his own. “The fuck do you think you’re doin’?” Hank said from behind. He didn’t receive an answer from the silently seething android.

RY300 was tempted to use his long legs to skip a couple of steps, the distance between the steps seeming too small for him. His footsteps were louder than necessary as he stomped up the stairs and yanked open the door to Room 28. The lock that had been there clattered to the floor.

Hank soon came in, looking about the room in frustration “It’s gone...” RY300 glanced at the ruffled beds. They still carried a temperature reading. The occupants had not left as long ago as it seemed. RY300 turned around in a circle, assessing the contents of the room. He walked out of the room and looked at what could be seen from the small balcony of the motel room. Looking back to see if either of his accomplices were watching him, he suddenly dashed back down the stairs.

Recalling the image of the deviant, RY300 began walking back into the center of the town, watching the faces of those he passed. A short figure holding hands with a child caught his eye. He recognized the child from CCTV. The android began walking faster towards the deviant.

One of the officers came into sight, walking directly into the path of the android and child. The AX400 model pulled the smaller girl behind a glass bus stop. It was a terrible hiding place. The male android seemed to reach the pair just as the cop came into range. RY300 hooked an arm into the AX400 own and forcibly pulled to get her to walk with him. Out of the corner of the cops eye, it would only seem like a couple moving to get out of the rain.

The AX400 had a look of panic on her face and bolted out of the other androids grip as soon as she could get into an alleyway. The deviant held onto the little girls hand tightly as she turned back around to face RY300, fear evident on her face. “Hold on now,” he started, the AX400 tensed immediately “I’m not going to hurt you...” he held his hands up in a non-threatening manner. “See? I don’t have anything on me.”

RY300 nodded slightly at her “I like the look.” The androids hair had been cut off, making it look unique among other of her model. She stood out. “Makes you look more alive, less like you were just taken off the assembly line.” The AX400 looked around warily.

“What’s your name?” he asked in a soft voice. “Nothing showed up in the files… just a serial number...” she stepped back and swallowed “Kara.” she said shakily. RY300 glanced at the girl clutching at her hand. She shifted behind Kara when she met his gaze. “Why did you run away?” he tried not to sound like an interrogator. Kara looked down at the child “Your owner said you attacked him and ran off. But why take her with you?” RY300 pressed carefully. “I’m an android, like you. I won’t turn you in.”

“He was beating her...” she started off hesitantly with a far off look in her eyes. He listened to her intently, lowering his hands as she spoke. “Something snapped inside of me… and I knew I couldn’t watch and let it happen.”  _ It wasn’t fair _ . The words of Ortiz’ android seemed to echo in Kara’s speech. “Can you help us?” the little girl spoke up now. RY300 didn’t notice a small sad smile appear on his own face.

“I-” he prepared to make some empty promise but shut his mouth. “I can’t do that,” he said finally.

“Shit, that’s them!” the sudden appearance of a new voice made him whirl around in surprise. One of the human officers had found them. RY300 stumbled as he was pushed to the side as Kara and the little girl ran past him into the streets. “STOP! POLICE!” the human officer began running after them, causing a commotion.

Several other cops shouted as the two of them passed them by in their flee. RY300 was quick to compose himself and catch up with the two fugitives, passing the winded officer easily. Kara and the girl turned into another space between buildings abruptly, almost sliding as Kara sprinted, dragging the girl behind her.

“KARA!” RY300 called after the deviant in an attempt to get her to stop, or at very least get distracted enough for him to catch up. Distantly, he thought he could hear Hank shouting among the other policemen. Turning quickly, he saw Kara lift the girl over the fence before vaulting over it herself. He felt panicked once he saw the high-speed freeway below the hill.

He ran faster, using his momentum to get over the fence. He stumbled and rolled where he hit the ground. “KARA! WAIT!” he shouted. Amazingly, the deviant stopped just at the edge of the freeway, stiffly turning her head to look behind her. RY300 righted himself, scrambling to get himself off the ground. He put a hand out towards the two girls. “Kara, if you go onto that freeway you’ll die,” he warned, glancing rapidly between the pair and the zooming cars behind them. “Don’t think for a moment they’ll slow down for an android.” Kara seemed to hesitate now, gaze flicking to the chaos behind her.

The clattering of the fence behind him snatched away his chance of getting through to her. “Don’t shoot! We need it alive!” Connor’s voice rang out. The AX400 bolted, lifting the little girl over the barrier and running across the road. “Don’t!” RY300 attempted to reason one more time, a hand jutting out to try to pull them away from the road. “Oh fuck, that’s insane...” Hank’s voice came from behind. The fence clattered again as RY300 ran a hand through his hair, LED blinking red. “Hey! Where you goin’?” Hank snapped. “I can’t let them get away!” “They won’t! They’ll never make it to the other side.” RY300 watched the pair dodge the cars anxiously. “Connor, goddammit!” Hank shouted as the fenced clattered once more. There was a thud and RY300 turned to see Connor slipping down the wet hill to pursue the deviant.

He caught the dark-haired android in his arms, keeping him from following the deviant across the road. Connor struggled in his grip, trying to push away. “We can’t let them get away!” he said angrily. RY300 pushed farther away from the barrier. “And what’s the alternative? You get pasted to a windshield?” he snapped. He shoved Connor backward, feet spread to run after the other android if he bolted. “The only way they get across that is  _ luck _ , and quite frankly your record with these things isn’t encouraging.” Connor glared at the deviant and the girl as they reached the other side of the road. “You are interfering with the mission.” He hissed, the anger on his face looking odd on his normally passive face.

RY300 scowled “Yeah, you’re welcome.” he walked past the RK800, climbing back up the hill where the group of human police force waited.


	5. The Nest

**-November 6th, 2038 03:02PM**

The ride in Hank’s car was uncomfortably silent, neither android or human willing to start a conversation. Connor sat rigidly next to Hank, barely moving at all as he waited for the car to stop at their destination. RY300 was starting to become annoyed at the way the back of Hank’s seat would scrape at his knees harshly whenever the vehicle would shake on a rough patch of the road. He briefly considered jumping out of the car into the street to escape.

RY300 looked out of the darker-than-normal windows, frowning at the unfamiliar route. He leaned forward slightly as he asked Hank, “Where are we going? This isn’t the way to the station.” The man glanced at him through the rearview mirror “We aren’t going to the station. I need a fuckin’ break.” Hank said darkly. The ginger android leaned back again, face neutral as he continued looking at the scenery that rushed past the vehicle.

“Lieutenant,” Connor started, momentarily pausing when RY300 roughly slammed his head into the headrest “I don’t think it is wise to waste time away from the station. This case is very important.” “Well, I certainly wouldn’t mind being away from that chaos for a bit,” RY300 mumbled while staring at the roof of the car. The other android frowned in displeasure at the lack of initiative from the other occupants of the vehicle.

Two LEDs blinked yellow in confusion when the car pulled on to the side of a nearly empty road. A small, dirty looking food truck was the only thing of interest. It looked like it had not moved in years. RY300 leaned closer to the window to peer at the food truck questioningly.

Both androids swiveled their heads at the sound of the driver side door closing, Hank already walking towards the other vehicle. RY300 scrambled to leave the car at the sight of Connor already stepping out and following after the human. The androids long legs tripped slightly at how close the ground was, causing the ginger android to stumble before standing straight as possible. He looked around stiffly to see if there had been any witnesses.

“Whoa! Hey! Hey!” A car skidded on the road, nearly running over Hank in his carelessness of road safety. Hank made an angry gesture at the innocent driver. Connor trailed after the Lieutenant diligently, barely glancing at the other car. RY300 hurried his pace before he could get stuck on the other side of the road. He saw the displeased driver leaning on his elbow impatiently as he passed.

Hank was already at the food truck, conversing with the owner. Bit and pieces of conversation reached the androids ears. RY300 saw another man jogging towards them with purpose, looking directly at Hank as he reached them. The android narrowed his eyes at the smaller man as he got closer. “Hank!” the other human greeted jovially “How you doin’ man?”

He leaned in slightly as he spoke now “Hey, listen, I got a shit-hot tip for you. Number five in the third, Lickety-split!” RY300 got momentarily distracted, mouthing the word ‘lickety split’ in confusion, missing some of the conversations. “Last shit-hot tip you gave me sent me back a week’s wages, Pedro...” The android now scowled and moved directly into Hank’s field of vision without disturbing the conversation.

Pedro continued talking optimistically. “Come on, this is different, it’s 100% guaranteed. You can’t go wrong.” RY300 shook his head, disapproving of the situation. Besides, the man's information was wrong. Hank ignored any movement the android made, only stopping for a moment before agreeing “Yeah, right… Alright, I’m in.” Pedro cheered in victory “Damn straight!”

The man began to walk off, turning back to instill some sort of confidence in Hank “Hey! You won’t regret this!” Hank dismissed him and grabbed the food from the raised counter. He looked at both androids in frustration “What is your problem? Don’t you ever do as you’re told?” RY300 pointedly looked away “To be fair you didn’t say to stay in the car.” The Lieutenant stared at them incredulously “Look, you don’t have to follow me like a poodle!” RY300 looked back at Hank for a second “For the record, I only followed to keep him from getting scrapped.” he defended, pointing at Connor.

The human scoffed in disbelief and moved towards a table a few steps away, unwrapping his meal to begin eating. Connor looked unsure briefly “I’m sorry for my behavior back at the police station.” the RK800 glanced at the other android in his pause, who gave him cheeky thumbs up, despite not knowing why he was being watched. “I didn’t mean to be unpleasant.”

“Oh wow… you’ve even got a brown-nosing apology program!” Hank cheered fauxly. “Guys at Cyberlife thought of everything, huh?”  _ Search: brown-nosing. 1649 results.  _ “I think our relationship got off on the wrong foot.” Connor said passively “We should… forget what happened… and start over. What do you say?” Hank’s frown returned “Look, they sent me a piece of plastic for a partner, and I’m dealing with it. But if you think we’re gonna be buddies, you’re as stupid as you look.”

The RK800 looked back at the other android, unaware of how to continue speaking from here. RY300 filed away the behavior in interest. “Well he’s not doing bad for a machine I think.” the ginger commented. “At least you got one with enough sense to recognize their mistakes.” Hank chewed on his burger in disinterest.

“This Pedro...” the RK800 started hesitantly as if Hank’s temper could go off at any moment “He was proposing illegal gambling, am I right?” “Yeah.” Connor almost seemed human with the look he gave the Lieutenant. “And you made a bet?” “Yeah.” Hank had no remorse as he confirmed. Connor blinked, leaning back.

“Your meal contains 1.4 times the recommended daily intake of calories and twice the cholesterol level. You shouldn’t eat that.” Connor warned. Hank shrugged “Everybody’s gotta die of something...” RY300 leaned closer to the other android “Yeah… don’t tell humans how unhealthy their food is. They’ll just want to eat it more.” Hank looked up from his lunch, offended. RY300 gave the human an innocent expression. The other android seemed unaware of this. He kept talking. “Do you eat here often?” Hank’s focus shifted back to his burger now “Most days… Gary makes the best burger in Detroit.” RY300 raised an eyebrow. “Taste-wise at least.” Hank scowled at the android.

Connor’s onslaught of personal questions seemed to stop for a while. “Is there anything you’d like to know about me?” Hank frowned at being interrupted again “Hell, no.” He then paused “Well, yeah, um… why did they make you look so goofy and give you that weird voice?” RY300 laced his fingers together and placed his elbows on the table, leaning so that his hands covered his mouth. The grey-suited androids response was instantaneous like an automatic voicemail “Cyberlife androids are designed to work harmoniously with humans. Both my appearance and voice were specifically designed to facilitate my integration.” Hank hummed as if impressed, only to drop the expression moments later “Well, they fucked up.” his response was monotonous.

“Careful Lieutenant, you almost seemed likable there for a moment.” RY300 drawled, moving his head above his hands to rest his chin on them. Hank jabbed a finger at the red-haired android “Okay, I get one more question. The hell are you here for?” the vaguely amused expression vanished from the androids face. From the corner of his vision, he could see Connor studying him carefully. “And don’t give me any of that ‘classified’ bullshit you gave Reed,” Hank warned.

“The RY300 is a specialized model made for the purpose of apprehending deviants,” Connor spoke before the other android made a move. RY300’s hands fell down, crossing over as he turned his displeasure on to the RK800. Hank watched them both, thoughtful. “Alright, what’s the difference between you and him?”

“The RY300 was made to understand and mimic deviant behavior and use that information to decrease the damage caused by these… outbreaks of deviancy.” “I can speak for myself.” RY300 snapped at Connor rigidly. Anderson raised an eyebrow at the reaction. “What do you mean by mimic?” Connor’s gaze flicked between the human and the android. “There were some changes made to the internal processes that are… non-standard.” Hank set down his burger, moving his hands as he spoke.

“Wait wait wait,” His face held a look of incredulousness “So you’re telling me that those Cyberlife fucks  _ made _ a deviant  _ to catch deviants _ .” He threw his hands up “What the hell...” “Fight fire with fire and all that jazz,” RY300 muttered, void of emotion. The Lieutenant leaned back into the table, reigning back into the conversation.

“Okay, I’ve seen  _ him _ ,” he pointed at Connor “On the news. But you’re not even mentioned once. Would’ve figured that this kind of shit would be something the press would be all over.”

“Cyberlife probably cut out any stories involving me. Reputation is a big deal, so I hear.”

“The hell is the world coming to…”

Connor observed the situation cautiously, studying the expressions given to him to see if it was safe to speak once more “Maybe I should tell you what we know about deviants?” “You read my mind,” Hank said sarcastically, though the lack of response probably meant it hadn’t been understood by the android. “Proceed.”

“We believe that a mutation occurs in the software of some androids, which can lead to them emulating a human emotion.” The Lieutenant frowned “You believe? How come you lot don’t know if you’ve got doom and gloom over here?” He jabbed a finger at the silent RY300. “I was  _ made _ at Cyberlife. It was artificial. Whatever happens to androids to make them deviant did not happen to me.” The ginger android said coldly.

The RK800 paused before continuing “They don’t really feel emotions, they just get overwhelmed by irrational instructions, which can lead to unpredictable behavior.” “If the urge to punch you in the face is considered an irrational instruction, then hell yeah.” RY300’s face remained blank even as he threatened the other android. Hank scoffed lightly “Emotions always screw everything up… Maybe androids aren’t as different from us as we thought.” He looked back at Connor again.

“You ever dealt with deviants before?”

“A few months back… A deviant was threatening to jump off the roof with a little girl… I managed to save her….”

“Just you?”

“Yes.”

“Where was he then?” Hank nodded at RY300, who responded in place of Connor. “I was… still under construction.” He said hesitantly. “Really?” Hank said disbelievingly “You seem to have a lot of experience with humans for being ‘under construction’ for that long. Or is that all programmed in?” RY300 scowled at the man. “I had to socialize with other deviants… to make sure I would replicate their behavior.”

“There were other deviants?”

“There were.”

“Cyberlife knew the location of a bunch of deviants, but let them wander around just to test out their new pet project?”

“Not exactly...”

“The hell do you mean ‘not exactly’?”

“They weren’t a concern.”

“Not a concern? These fuckers have been killing people!” Hank was angry now, glaring at RY300. The android stayed silent, but meeting his gaze evenly. He scoffed, turning away from him in favor of looking at Connor. “So, I guess you’ve done all your homework, right? Know everything there is to know about me?”

The dark-haired android seemed disoriented from the sudden change of topic but recovered quickly. “I know you graduated top of your class. you made a name for yourself in several cases and became the youngest lieutenant in Detroit. I also know you’ve received several disciplinary warning in recent years and you spend a lot of time in bars.” Connor looked over at the other android among them, finding him not looking at either of them. Hank’s voice brought him back to the conversation “So what’s your conclusion?”

“I know you’re an experienced officer, and I’d like to earn your trust. I’m sure we can solve this case if we work together.” He replied logically. Connor’s LED flashed yellow and his eye fluttered for a moment. “I just got a report of a suspected deviant. It’s a few blocks away. We should go have a look.” He glanced down at Hanks food. “I’ll let you finish your meal. I’ll be in the car if you need me.”

The RK800 turned to face the other android to ask if he would accompany him, only to find an empty space where he had been. He looked over his shoulder to see RY300 already reaching the car. The tall android struggled with the door for a moment before looking back to glare where the other two still stood. Hank fished through his pocket and took out his keys, unlocking the car before shoving them back into his coat when the headlights flashed.

The ginger android tugged on the handle again. The door still didn’t open. He looked back again to see Hank not paying attention anymore, already digging back into his burger. Connor watched as the android went around the car to the driver side, which was open, and scramble over the seat into the back, nearly falling when his long legs tangled in the cramped space. His LED blinked curiously when the RY300 caught his gaze and immediately sank below the view of the window.

-

RY300 frowned at the unresponsiveness of Connor as the elevator they were in moved closer and closer to where the suspect supposedly was. He hesitantly waved a hand in front of the android's face, retracting it when Hank looked at him oddly before resuming his impatient staring at the elevator doors. He awkwardly grasped his hands in front of him, waiting silently.

The ding of the doors opening was a relief for the android, who wasted no time exiting the elevator. Hank looked back at the lift, noticing Connor still standing in it. “Hey, Connor! You ran outta batteries or what?” The android blinked as he refocused “I’m sorry, I was making a report to Cyberlife.”

“Uh… well, do you plan on staying in the elevator?”

“No! I’m coming.” Connor moved quicker than normal to go after the Lieutenant, who gave him a weird look as he walked on. “What do we know about this guy?“ he asked Connor. RY300 ignored their ‘pep talk’ and looked around the decrepit looking hallway, nose scrunching at the state of it “Humans live in these?” he began questioning the sanity of the people he had seen walking to their home a few floors down. “Hey!” Hank caught his attention. RY300 looked over curiously “Can you do that too?” The android squinted “Do what?” “Make a report by closing your eyes?”

RY300 returned to his observing “Uh… no.” “Why not?” The android kicked at a pile of dirty trash distractedly. “Because… reasons...” Hank hummed in mock understanding “Are we doing that classified shit again?” “It is suspected that deviancy can be spread through android interfaces.” Connor piped in. RY300 scowled at the shorter androids back, circling back to approach the door with both him and Hank.

Connor knocked harshly on the door “Anybody home? Open up! Detroit Police!” a thud and scraping of movement emanated from behind the door. Hank's eyes widened and he pushed Connor behind him, gun already out of its holster “Stay behind me.” “Got it.” RY300 positioned himself against the wall, parallel to the doorframe. Hank broke down the door, gun ahead of him. Both androids followed closely behind.

The Lieutenant burst through the second door, coughing as a mass of feathers blew upwards from the force. “What the fuck is this?!” He waved one hand in front of him, attempting to clear the dust and feathers away from him. “Jesus, this place stinks...” He glanced around at the empty room “Looks like we came for nothin’, our man’s gone...” There seemed to be a whole flock of pigeons living in the apartment. The room itself was in disarray.

RY300 entered the room, heading towards the window and opening it. He stuck his head out and looked down with narrowed eyes. There was no obvious ledge that the suspect could have used to escape.  _ Suspect didn’t escape here.  _ He looked over his shoulder to see what Connor was up to but caught his eye on the strange patterns painted on one of the walls. A poster partially covered one of the symbols.

It was strangely worn down as if it had been moved several times. One of the corners was devoid of color where someone had repeatedly grabbed at it. Curiously, RY300 tugged at the poster, which fell down at his feet, revealing a previously hidden gap in the wall. Something stuck out of it. The android removed the object, finding that it was a notebook.  _ No matching language. Indecipherable.  _ Hank walked up behind him “Found something?”

RY300 tilted the notebook towards the lieutenant. “Yeah, some sort of notebook… but it’s coded. I can’t decipher it.” Hank hummed thoughtfully. RY300 placed the notebook down to retrieve later. Connor spoke about his findings aloud from the other side of the room “‘R. T.’. Probably initials.” Hank made a face “He put his initials on his jacket? That’s something your mom does when you’re in first grade...” Connor looked at the refrigerator across from him. It looked like it hadn’t been used before. The door stuck for a moment when he opened it. Hank kicked at a pigeon that got too close, cursing at it vehemently.

The taller of the two androids paused in his searching momentarily to observe Connor, who seemed to frown at whatever he saw in the refrigerator before abandoning it in favor of striding towards the closet beside RY300. Curious and pensive, RY300 braced himself when the other android paused with his hand by the doorknob before yanking the closet open.

A group of previously hidden pigeons flew out of the closet in surprise, startled by Connor’s sudden movement. The dark-haired android staggered for a moment as the birds flew past and around him to escape. He was less enthusiastic compared to the purposeful walk he had moments before. He peeked into the closet before reluctantly closing it.

RY300 relaxed and looked at the doorless bathroom across from him, saying something that reflected the light it caught. Going into the room he picked up the object, then called out from over his shoulder “There’s a removed LED over here!” He absentmindedly traced a finger over his own swirling LED. Hank replied from behind him “Not surprised it was an android. No human could live with all these fuckin’ pigeons...” RY300 silently agreed as he flicked away a pigeon that had landed on the sink by his hand.

The sight of more writing on the walls caused RY300 to turn.

_ rA9?rA9?rA9?rA9?rA9?rA9?rA9?rA9?rA9? rA9 save me. _

His LED blinked rapidly as he processed the repeated message.  _ rA9. Written 2471 times.  _ “There’s some more of that rA9 writing over here. It’s all over the wall.” RY300 now murmured to himself “Over two thousand times...” “Wasn’t that written at Ortiz’s house too?” Hank questioned. Though he could not see his face, RY300 could perfectly picture the suspicious look the Lieutenant must be wearing. “Yeah...”

He could hear the other two people shuffling as they searched the impossibly small apartment. A stool was knocked over, very close to the writing on the wall. RY300 spotted an opened marker on the ground mere inches from it and crouched down to examine it. He ran a finger over the tip, drawing out a line.  _ Used recently. _ Focusing back on the stool he could see that there were scuffs where the small piece of furniture had scraped against the floor. They seemed to be recent as well. The android narrowed his eyes and opened his mouth to share his findings with his partners.

A loud crash from behind him made RY300 whirl around, standing on his feet immediately and sliding outside of the bathroom to see the cause of the commotion. A figure crawled off a downed Connor, who had apparently been standing underneath a hole in the ceiling that wasn’t previously noticed. The suspect didn’t even look around at the other occupants of the room before he began to sprint away.

“God damn fuckin’ pigeons! What are you waiting for?! Chase it!” Hank bellowed at the two androids while batting away the avians that insisted on disrupting his aim. RY300 complied and bolted after the fleeing suspect, jumping over Connor as the other android tried to lift himself up from the floor to follow. The panicked deviant threw down objects and furniture that had been put to the side in an attempt to slow down its chasers, making the investigative model more anxious about losing sight of it. RY300 burst through the door the deviant attempted to close on him.

The sudden brightness of daylight reflecting off of equally bright colors only caused a millisecond of distraction as the android ran after the deviant through a small field of yellowed grass after launching himself from the roof of the apartment building. The sight of an oncoming road made him run faster, the events involving Kara the AX400 still fresh in his mind. When he got close enough he lunged at the suspect, bringing it down a few feet away from it. The deviant fought against his hold, the tall grass blocking his vision for a moment. The suspect scrambled to get away, flailing as RY300 struggled to get a firm hold on him. The other androids random movements landed a harsh hit on his thirium pump, stunning his assailant enough to crawl away and begin jumping across the road to a raised platform with remarkable precision.

Connor ran past RY300, close behind the deviant. The ginger android recovered, his jarred pump shifting back in place with the help of a forceful hand. He pursued after both of them, regaining his speed as his thirium pump began circulating properly again. He followed after the two, dodging the people that stood in his way as they watched after two androids run across the roof “Get out of the way!” he shouted even as he pushed them aside. He braced himself to jump over a huge gap between two buildings, unwilling to lose the deviant. He rolled with the impact of his landing, smoothly transitioning back into a sprint. There were gasps and chatterings of surprise from the humans left behind him. If he had the time to build an ego he would have basked in the satisfaction of their reactions.

He caught sight of the RK800 not too far ahead, jumping over the rows of plants to dodge the curious and bewildered employees without harming them.

RY300 pushed past the gardeners and rolled their carts out of his way as he caught up to Connor and the frightened deviant. He paused briefly when he reached an expanse of purple colored plants, the automatic scanning process nearly distracting him, then catching sight of the RK800 chasing the deviant from a higher walkway. He cursed to himself and followed parallel to them from below, jumping on some of the gardening equipment to launch himself to the next roof.

RY300 was in front of Connor again, closing in on the deviant. The terrified android ahead turned sharply into a grove of trees, zig-zagging in an attempt to shake off his chasers and running into a field of tall corn. RY300 pushed through the plants angrily, determined to keep up with the deviant. He could hear Connor doing the same close behind.

It was a relief when he emerged from the field that blocked his vision. He spotted the deviant struggling with Hank, who had watched their progress and used a short cut to reach them. The deviant pushed Hank away before taking off again, the androids carelessness causing the man to trip over the edge and begin to fall over. The Lieutenants hands caught on the edge.

With loud a rustling and sudden parting of the tall plants, Connor came out of the patch corn next to him. He barely had time to analyze the situation before RY300 roughly pushed Connor towards Hank before taking off after the deviant himself.

The deviant stood by the edge of the roof, frozen with nowhere else to go. The gap was far too large to jump over and there was no longer any opportunities to turn back. The ginger android spoke calmly so the deviant wouldn’t startle, “There’s nowhere to run anymore. Turn around and put your hands up.” RY300 hoped that the deviant was scared enough that he wouldn’t notice his lack of weaponry and handcuffs. The deviant complied, even his movements seemed resigned and defeated.

_ WB200. Model #874 004 961.  _ “Please, I’ve done nothing wrong… I just wanted to be free. You know what they’ll do to me if you turn me in.” the deviant stepped forwards slightly. RY300 narrowed his eyes in suspicion and confusion but didn’t let himself take a step back.

“Stay right there,” RY300 warned his tone less calming and more stern. “They’ll deactivate me!” the deviant pleaded brokenly “I haven’t hurt anyone… none of the humans even knew I was there.” RY300’s face remained impassive and unreadable.

“I can show you what it’s like to feel this way… then you’ll understand.” The WB200’s hands suddenly came down, one hand grabbing RY300’s forearm and synthetic skin disappearing to reveal the white plastic beneath. Nothing happened.”What’s wrong with you?” the deviant whispered.

RY300 twisted the hand on his arm, forcing the android to drop to his knees. “I said keep your hands up.” He pressed the android down farther to discourage him from trying anything quick.

Hank came running up, panting from exertion and adrenaline, Connor close behind. The Lieutenant pointed at the deviant harshly “Don’t you fucking move!” RY300 shifted his body away from the deviant but didn’t release the other android until Hank brought out the handcuffs and secured them. “Why are you doing this?” Rupert asked helplessly. The Lieutenant scowled at the suspect. “Shut up!”

“You’re one of us! You’re helping humans… but you’re just their slave!”

“I said shut up!” Hank snapped at the cuffed deviant, jerking him up by his elbow “Alright. Come along!” He started leading the android off the roof. The WB200 looked up at the sky, closing his eyes as he braced himself.

“rA9, save me.”

The deviant suddenly yanked himself out of the Lieutenants grip, running towards the edge of the roof. “Hey! What the f-” Hank shouted after it. RY300’s hand shot out to stop him, snagging on his jacket as he ran past and reached the end of the building, not even stopping in fear. The weight was too much, causing the android to fall onto the roof, one arm hanging over the edge with the deviant in it’s grip. The jacket tore immediately, not made to support the full weight of a body.

A sickening thud came soon after. “Fucking androids,” Hank said disbelievingly. Connor hovered nearby RY300 where he had run towards him to attempt to hold back the deviant. His body language looked tense and unsure.

_ rA9?rA9?rA9?rA9?rA9?rA9?rA9?rA9?rA9? rA9 save me. _

The ginger android stared after the broken form of the WB200 for a couple moments before slamming his hand against the side of the building with an angry snarl. RY300 lifted himself from the cement with surprising vigor, still holding the ripped clothing in his fist. He stalked silently towards the stairway, past the other two figures that still stood on the roof. “Hey! Where the fuck are you goin’?” Hank called. “To retrieve a body.” the lanky android said darkly, not looking back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A longer than intended chapter, but I added some light hearted stuff before crushing you with the inevitable pain you came for.


	6. Russian Roulette

**-November 6th, 2038 07:51PM**

Connor no longer reacted to the sudden sight of various beautiful flowers and other flora. Of course, he didn’t, machines don’t have interests in flowers. He didn’t even question the presence of an umbrella in his hand.

The rain that fell on him did not seem to diminish the beauty of the garden. Of course, it didn’t, nothing had changed in the garden beside the persistent fall of rain and the dim light that accompanied it.

He walked through the gardens that would make any human turn their heads in interest with a completely neutral expression. An out of place pillar-like structure caught his attention, but he ignored it in favor of approaching a dark-skinned woman that stood where one of the paths branched away from the stark white structure that the garden seemed to revolve around. She stood straight and faced forwards. She had obviously been waiting for him.

“Hello, Amanda.” He greeted her mechanically. The woman, Amanda, gave a small smile as she turned away from the roses she always seemed to be tending to and looked at the android. “Connor, I've been expecting you... Would you mind a little walk?” There was no real reason why she had asked for his approval, he had no preferences anyway. Connor nodded and opened the umbrella he had been carrying, positioning it above her. He walked side by side with her, wandering aimlessly through the gardens while keeping the umbrella over both of their heads. Not that the rain had bothered him before, but the action seemed customary among humans.

“Congratulations, Connor, you managed to find that deviant,” Amanda said warmly, though only looking ahead at the curving, decorative path they were walking. “Tell me, what did you learn?” Connor paused only for a moment before answering her “The RY300 found its diary, but it was encrypted. It may take weeks to decipher.” He said, remembering how the other android had shoved the piece of evidence towards him after being forced to return to the apartment to collect it and other items of interest. “What else?” she prompted him.

He continued, “The walls of the apartment were covered with drawings of labyrinths and other symbols. Like the other deviants, it seemed obsessed with rA9.”  He hesitated again, thinking before adding to his statement. “It was fascinated by birds. We've seen deviants interested in other lifeforms like insects or pets, but nothing like this.”

“You came very close to capturing that deviant…” Amanda trailed off for a moment, “It's a pity you let it self-destruct...” She watched him carefully now.

“It was in Lieutenant Anderson's custody. I couldn't anticipate that he would let it get away.” Connor explained monotonously, keeping an even pace. “I was too far away at the time to do anything about it.”

Amanda merely glanced at him from the corner of her eye, studying him silently “How is your relationship with the Lieutenant developing?” she asked neutrally. “He seemed grateful that I saved his life on the roof. He didn't say anything, but he expressed it in his own way...” Hank had seemed to be in a friendlier mood, especially towards him, even after the loss of the deviant. The Lieutenant hadn’t even commented on the thirium stains that were left behind on his car seats by RY300. Or he simply hadn’t noticed them.

Amanda suddenly slowed her pace, eventually stopping completely and forcing her android companion to turn around to face her.

She looked directly at him now, “The RY300 made you divert your attention towards the Lieutenant instead of continuing to pursue the deviant yourself and let the deviant destroy itself.” Connor was confused by her tone, but his hesitance never appeared on his face. “Do not rely on the RY300 too heavily.” She warned him. “Remember that it is a deviant as well. It could have an ulterior motive. Watch it carefully.”

“We don't have much time. Deviancy continues to spread. It's only a matter of time before the media finds out about it. We need to stop this, whatever it takes.” Amanda straightened her posture now, invoking an intimidating presence as she spoke darkly.

“I will solve this investigation, Amanda. I won't disappoint you.” The RK800 assured the woman.

Her friendly demeanor from before was still absent. “A new case just came in. Find Anderson and investigate it.” She commanded firmly, then walked away from Connor.

His LED swirled a bright yellow as he watched her turn her back on him.

-

“ _ What _ .”

RY300 stared at the man seated before him disbelievingly. “You’re going to be reassigned to a new partner. You’ll be working with Detective Reed in narcotics.” Captain Fowler spoke deliberately and slowly as if speaking to a child. A child that was planning on dabbling in several different methods of murder. “I was in the middle of a case! Do you have any idea how hard it is for an android to get a taxi?” The red-haired android snapped at the man harshly, who only looked back at him coldly in return. “No you weren’t, Anderson has already clocked in and gone home. That other android went back to Cyberlife for minor repairs.”

“Worth a shot.” RY300 hissed.

“I was made to hunt  _ deviants _ ,” the android continued, no longer caring about acting like a machine in front of the human, “Not a bunch of humans high on Red Ice.”

“The Red Ice cases are closely linked with the outbreaks of deviancy, you’ll still be accomplishing your mission!” The dark man said. RY300 scoffed and paced in front of the desk. The man continued to attempt to reason with the aggravated android “It is inefficient to have  _ two  _ state of the art androids working on the same cases!”

“Are you sure? They might  _ need  _ two androids just to keep up with the human detectives.” Detective Reed sneered from where he leaned against a wall behind the android, not happy about the arrangement he was hearing either. RY300 scowled at the detective over his shoulder. “Yeah I’m not exactly fond of humans, let alone  _ this  _ one.” he snapped coldly. The captain scoffed from his desk “No offense taken.” he spoke sarcastically. RY300 looked back at the man, looking genuinely surprised. “Really? ‘Cause that wasn’t what I was aiming for.”

“This plastic prick is too faulty to do anything anyway. How about we just send it back to Cyberlife and be done with this?” Gavin sneered at the machine in front of him.

“Do you want to learn how breakable the human body is?”

“What are you, a high school textbook?”

“Enough!” Fowler slammed his hands on his desk, silencing the two immediately. Both the android and the human wisely kept their mouths shut as Fowler began speaking again, this time in a tone that left no room for argument. “Cyberlife is hounding our department to deal with this deviancy problem. The faster we get this over with the faster we get them off our asses and these attacks stop,  _ in fact,  _ they recommended that you be reassigned.” The Captain leaned back into his chair again. “You will both work  _ together _ on your assigned cases without acting like fucking  _ children _ .  _ End of discussion. _ ”

RY300 recoiled and made a noise of anger. He stormed out of the Captain's office, nearly cracking the glass door as he left. The android stalked over to Hank’s desk, which was empty at the moment, and threw himself into the chair. His foot tapped aggressively on the floor. It was only a few minutes until he was bothered again.

“Are you malfunctioning? You don’t work for Anderson anymore.” Reed snapped at the seething android as soon as he got into hearing range. RY300 looked up and sneered at the Detective, his voice mocking Gavin’s tone exactly “ _ Really _ Detective? Careful, with your attitude. You might end up hurting someone’s feelings one day.” the human scoffed “Well it’s a good thing I’ll be around a  _ machine  _ all day.” RY300 glared at the man, wishing he was able to wipe his cruel smile off his face without being shot down.

“We have a case,” RY300 said, surprisingly monotone compared to his mood and previous behavior. Reed’s face twisted into an expression of incredulous confusion “What?” “We have,” RY300 emphasized every word as if speaking to a toddler, “A case.” The lanky androids pointed to the Detectives desk across the room “There’s a file on your desk.”

Reed bristled at him “You think you can go through my stuff just because Fowler says you can tag along?” RY300 gave him a look. “It’s been there for hours. You used it as a footrest.” the android scowled again “In case you haven’t noticed, I don’t exactly  _ want _ to have you hanging around while I work.” Gavin looked enraged by the comment and seemed to be about to take a swing or shout at the android, but suddenly just glared and turned around to walk away from him.

Curiously, RY300 swiveled to see what could have made the Detective react in such a way. Captain Fowler stood by the entrance of his office, arms crossed in displeasure. The man was staring at the android with a serious expression. RY300 felt a sensation he wasn’t familiar with as he read the man’s stern facial features.

This man could easily have him deactivated a stripped for recycling.

_ And probably wouldn’t even blink an eye about it. _ RY300 thought grimly, turning away quicker than he would have liked to admit. He now wished that he hadn’t been so forward in the Captain’s office earlier.  _ Better get on that case then I suppose. Let's not give him a reason to scrap me. _ RY300 scanned over the wandering faces within the station to relocate Reed and convince him to get started. Strangely, the man didn’t seem to be in the building anymore.

Still wearing a disgruntled look from his previous realization, he caught the attention of a female officer nearby. He vaguely recognized her as Tina Chen, the woman who had been with Reed in the break room when Connor had turned up. “Do you know where Reed went off to?” Officer Chen looked mildly surprised, like all the humans that he spoke to before.

“Yeah, he left a few minutes ago.”

“Left? Left  _ where _ ?”

“To a new case scene, I would guess.”

RY300 looked at the glass windows that made up the front of the station, frowning. There were many lines of cars that belonged to the officers that worked at the station, as well as people who were here to make a report. Reed could easily camp out in his car to avoid him. Unless he parked close to the building.

Tina gave the android a strange look before awkwardly continuing on to complete her duties.

RY300 flicked his eyes at the Detectives desk from afar. The file that had lain on the desk was flipped open. Movement in the parking lot caught his eye, returning his attention to it. A car was pulling out of a lot. The android narrowed his eyes in suspicion, walking towards the entrance of the station as he kept his eyes on the vehicle. He pushed the doors open as the car turned to drive around the lot. RY300 scanned the license plate.

_ Car purchased and owned by Gavin Reed. _

“Motherf...” RY300 hissed, jogging on the sidewalk just as the car was parallel to him. “Hey! Reed!” the android shouted at the car. Gavin glanced at the android yelling at him from the side of the road, automatically raising his hand and flipping the bird. He didn’t even have the decency to show off his lovely sneer as he drove out of the parking lot, presumingly to the scene of the case.

RY300 made an indecipherable noise of anger and frustration, throwing his hands up as he vented his pent up aggression. “Asshole!” he shouted at the empty space where the Detectives car had been before. He grit his teeth and glared back at the building behind him. Several pairs of blinds closed as his gaze fell on them.

RY300 groaned and reluctantly dragged himself back into the station to ask for money to take a bus.

-

It was not as easy as he thought it would be to gather enough money to use the bus. The other Officers were not very keen on giving their money to an android and gave him strange looks when he approached them. He had ended up going through Hanks desk and taking whatever loose change he had lying around.

It was only when the bus doors opened on both the android compartment and human compartment on either side of the vehicle. that he realized he hadn’t needed the money anyway. He pocketed the change for future use, slightly embarrassed by the event and his forgetfulness.

RY300 looked at the entrance for the android compartment blankly before turning on his heel and going into the human-only space at the front of the bus. The driver wasn’t watching who was entering into the vehicle and didn’t stop the android, her eyes were firmly focused on the road ahead. The few passengers inside looked bewildered and cautious but remained silent.

RY300 didn’t pay any mind to the humans who stared at him, simply progressing towards the back of the bus and sitting where no one else was near. The driver waited for any last-minute passengers to arrive.

A black-haired woman a few seats in front of him kept looking back in her seat at him, giving him disbelieving and irritated looks as the bus waited for any late passengers. Finally, she stood up and moved towards him, a determined expression in her eyes. “Androids are supposed to be stored in the  _ android compartment _ . You can’t be in here.” The seated android looked up at her boredly, yet thinking rapidly.

“It’s a costume.” He lied.

“What?”

“It’s a costume. A prank. A dare. Whichever term you prefer.”

The dark-haired woman gazed down on him sternly “That’s  _ illegal _ .” RY300 shrugged, jabbing his thumb over his shoulder to point at the police station a few yards away. “Why do you think I was in there?” She put her hands on her hips, “You can’t wear  _ that  _ while walking around the city.” RY300 right eye twitched in irritation. “ _ Yes _ .” He stressed the word “I am aware of that. I don’t exactly have clothes with me at the moment.” He tried desperately not to sound aggressive.

“Then just take the jacket off!” She snapped.

His LED started to blink yellow with his frustration, catching the woman's eye. She stepped back a few inches, raising a hand to point at him “You  _ are  _ an android!” she stated loudly, catching the attention of several other passengers.

RY300 spoke through gritted teeth now “ _ No _ . I’m not.”

“You’re a deviant aren’t you!”

“Look, I’m jus-”

“Androids do what they’re told! You’re a deviant!” Some of the other humans occupying the vehicle started chattering amongst themselves, looking at him and the woman warily. Snippets of disbelief that a deviant would be spotted so close to a police station filtered to RY300’s ears.

RY300 tried to raise his hands placatingly, but the woman spooked and stepped back rapidly. She caught her foot on the back of one of the seats and toppled over, still moving backward. Some of the other humans stood up in alarm, watching RY300 with wide eyes. A man near the front of the bus drew out a gun. “You stay right there.”

Everyone on the bus tensed, the other occupants pressing themselves against the sides of the bus as if any of them could be shot at any moment. The man’s heart was beating rapidly, RY300 was worried he would keel over from a heart attack at any moment. “Put away the gun...” the android said calmly, shifting to stand up. The man moved the firearm threateningly “Don’t move. Stay right there.” RY300 narrowed his eyes, but complied, sitting back into the bus seat. A panicked young man started fishing through his pockets quietly.

“I’m not a deviant… or an android. Androids are mass produced. You ever seen an android with my face?”

“You could be a new model. Cyberlife is  _ always  _ making those.” 

“I need you to put that gun down. You are endangering people for no reason.”

_ “You need to shut up!” _

RY300 sighed, head hitting the back of the seat. Things were escalating too quickly. The stress inside the bus had skyrocketed the longer the situation continued.

“Alright! Everybody out of the bus! Detroit Police!” A loud, familiar voice commanded from the bus entrance. RY300 put his face in his hands with an agonized  _ “ohmygod.”  _ and LED swirling bright yellow. Everyone except the armed man quickly evacuated from the vehicle, until the Officer that had arrived approached and yanked the gun out of his hands and forced him to exit, still shouting something.

Lieutenant Anderson’s expression shifted to one of incredulousness and annoyance as soon as he spotted RY300 in the back of the bus.

“You’ve  _ got  _ to be kidding me.”

RY300 gave him a sardonic smile.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It was in the tags.


	7. Corner of the Eye

“Turn left.”  
“Look, I’m not gonna be your taxi service between you and Reed. I definitely don’t get paid enough to put up with this shit.” Hank grumbled as he pulled the steering wheel into a hard left.  
“It’s not like a planned to have a gun pointed at me. Who brings a gun on a public bus?” RY300 snapped, “Besides, it’s not my fault that the Detective drove off without me! Turn left.” Hank nodded in mock agreement, not entirely listening anymore. The android shifted in the front seat, realizing he had unconsciously curled his knees as close to his body as he could, finally relaxing and spreading his legs out. He glanced at the back seat.  
“Where’s Connor?”  
“Wherever he goes when he’s not following me around,” Hank said as he fiddled with some buttons on his dashboard, finding a station and turning up the radio. RY300’s nose wrinkled at the Lieutenant’s choice of music, but the android stayed silent and no further conversation outside of giving directions followed until Anderson’s car pulled up to a house surrounded by standard police cruisers.  
“Really, this would have been much easier if you just had a GPS.”  
“Just get out of the car.”  
The ginger android stuffed his hand in his pocket, fishing around in it until he pulled out the few coins he had grabbed from Hank’s desk. He poured the small number of assorted coins into the cars cup holder.  
“Now you really are a taxi service,” RY300 said, exiting the car without waiting for a reaction. Anderson drove off as soon as the passenger side door closed. Half smiling, RY300 studied the outside of the house.   
Purchased and owned by Morgan Johnson. Built in 2004. Market Value: $1,500,000+.  
The house was in surprisingly good shape. As well as expensive. It was clean and there was no sign of disturbances other than the mass of police presence. Not what the android had expected from the case files information of the scene. He scowled when he could see Gavin Reed wandering in the house through the window. Mood darkened, he stalked up to the two-story house, passing several confused officers. A woman who was watching the perimeter of the police tape raised a hand to stop the aggravated android “Can it! I’m with Reed!” RY300 snapped at the poor bewildered officer before she could speak. The Detective scowled through the window as RY300 passed her, but didn’t move from his position.  
RY300 quickly stalked through the house, locating Reed in mere seconds and approaching him aggressively. The android jabbed a finger in the man's chest. “We have to work together, you idiot.” He hissed.  
Reed slapped the other’s hand away. “I don’t care what Fowler says, I’m not working with any plastic fuck.” The human sneered up at the synthetic man before him. “Besides, with all these ‘deviants’ turning up, what to stop me from reporting you as one of them to Cyberlife?” RY300 absently noted Reed’s hand move closer to the gun in his belt. “Oh, didn’t you know? Cyberlife started installing hidden cameras into their androids years ago. But do keep talking, I’m dying to know what your plan is.” The androids mouth gained a mocking lilt as he spoke, his eyes narrowing at the shorter person.  
The brown-haired man scoffed and turned away from RY300, seemingly undeterred, though the android spotted Gavin glancing at him suspiciously occasionally. A woman was chattering loudly and animatedly somewhere in the house, likely the owner being questioned. The investigative android reminded himself that he was there only for suspected use of drugs and several reports of loud disturbances. The owner was not yet considered guilty of anything.  
He scanned the room, editing and subtracting the officers standing in the room from the feed. Several Cyberlife products were marked automatically by his scan, including an android charging station built into the wall. RY300 grabbed the attention of a nearby officer that wasn’t Reed.  
“Did you find the owners android?” The officer paused for a moment, briefly confused. “No…. no we haven’t.” The officer glanced at the charging station thoughtfully. The android approached the small machine, scanning.  
There were scratched and pieces of its plastic frame chipped away at its sides as if someone had tried to rip it away from the wall it had been bolted to. The connector meant to power an android was bent and warped, making it inoperable and useless. The in-depth scan highlighted the bright blue smudges present on the corner of the charger.   
Thirium Traces…   
PM700. Female Model. #783 157 395. Purchased and owned by Morgan Johnson.  
“Start searching for the android, it seems like there was a fight recently. It will probably be damaged.” RY300 said to the officer, who still stood behind him, watching his actions. “You think the android malfunctioned and caused the disturbances?” The officer questioned. RY300 moved his face slightly to look at the man from the side of his vision.  
Chris Miller.  
“No, but it is a possibility.” “Is it dangerous?” “Could be...” RY300’s eyes trailed to the ever-increasing amount of thirium smears appearing on the floor “Though I doubt it will be in any condition to fight.” The dark skinned man soon hurried off to inform his fellow officers, having no more questions to ask. RY300 looked at the thirium studiously. The puddles that must have been there were smeared in circular patterns as if someone had tried to scrub them away. The news of an android investigator clearly hadn’t gotten around as much as he had thought. Or the suspect had impaired judgment.  
A large splatter of blue blood on the staircase was found easily by RY300. It looked as if this particular spot hadn’t been cleaned at all. The thirium must have evaporated before the suspect had gotten to it. Walking over, RY300 could see several big puddles of thirium splotching the dark wood of the stairs all the way to the top. The android must have been damaged severely and fallen down.  
An officer scooted past him to go up the stairs while RY300 thought to himself. He walked up after her slowly, scanning and observing the walls surrounding the staircase. Several indentations near the bottom of the walls were noted in his mind. A long streak of blue blood lay at the last step, the imprint of an android-standard shoe barely visible in it, along with the blurred shape of a printless hand on the railing. RY300 frowned and continued on.  
It seemed that the whole upstairs hadn’t been cleaned of its evidence. Violent splatters of thirium marked the hallway dramatically. RY300 cringed in disgust, earning a strange look from the officer he had followed upstairs.  
There were three rooms, two of them already opened by officers searching the floor, perhaps for the missing android if Miller had gotten to them already. RY300 pushed open the door for the bathroom, speckles of some sort of substance littered the inside of the sink as well as the rim. RY300 frowned and stepped closer to the substance, scanning.  
Red Ice. Thirium elements.  
The android's eyes flicked over the bathroom counter and he reached a hand out to turn over some of the items. He moved a soap bottle away to put it elsewhere, nearly jumping when the backwash tile behind it fell on his hand. Confused, he moved the tile away as well. A hole had been cut in the wall, approximately the same size as the tile itself. Pieces of plastic were stuffed into the makeshift compartment. RY300 pulled the small bundles out slowly, which unraveled as soon as they were pulled out completely. Several empty plastic bags lay in the android's hands, specks of Red Ice left over.  
“Over here!” A loud shout rang through the house. “I found the android!”  
Dropping the items with a clatter from a toothbrush he knocked over, RY300 ran towards the source of the shouting as quickly as he could, absentmindedly surprised at how well this particular case had been turning out. Turning on his heel into the room farthest from where he had been, he found Reed crouching in front of an opened walk-in closet. The blue spots on the floor in front of him were telling enough. Two other officers were also in the room, one of them had a hand planted over his mouth. RY300 walked around and peered over Reed’s shoulder.  
The PM700 android was shoved in a small corner of the closet in a tipped plastic storage bin meant for other items. The clothes hanging in the closet were draped halfway over its body, some of them soaked through with enough thirium that it was visible to the humans present. The right side of the androids head was caved in, internal components not meant to be visible were mashed and poking out of the exposed circuitry. The androids face had locked in an expression of pure fear and terror before deactivating. It’s thirium pump lay under its limp leg.  
RY300 kneeled down, putting a hand under the leg to lift it. Reed put a hand on the android's arm “What are you doing?” RY300 paused for a moment to examine the detective. Reed’s face looked grim, but not hostile. “Just checking something.” He said quietly, for some reason it seemed inappropriate to speak too loud. “No fingerprints, I won’t damage evidence.” He reassured, then continued to move the limb.  
The leg was stiff and frozen, it wouldn’t bend at the knee when it was raised, making the body seem even more disturbing somehow. An emotion that RY300 couldn’t yet identify lurched in his mind at the feeling of the blue blood seeping through his uniform. With his other hand, RY300 grabbed the thirium pump, gently setting the leg down on the ground.  
The androids lip curled at the condition of the palm-sized biocomponent. The small tubing meant to conduct electricity and activate the thirium was torn to shreds, and the harder, plastic casings meant to blend into the body of it’s android was worn down to a thin sheet. “It’s not supposed to look like that, is it?” Detective Reed spoke from his side. RY300 glanced at the human briefly before looking back at the biocomponent in distaste “No. No, it is not. It takes a lot of effort to damage this component to this degree.” RY300 stood up.  
“Where’s the owner of the android?”  
“Downstairs in the living room, still giving a statement.” One of the officers spoke up. Only one of the two other officers remained in the room.  
RY300 exited the room, pausing when he noticed the biocomponent still in his grasp. He set the vital mechanism down on a nearby counter delicately. The sound of footsteps following behind him was dismissed as he returned to the first floor, navigating to the expensive looking living room. An officer and a civilian woman stood on the right side of the room, the woman, in particular, was moving her hands dramatically for some point or excuse she was making.  
Morgan Johnson. Female. Age:46. Occupation:...  
“We found your android Ms. Johnson.” The woman turned from the officer she had been speaking with, looking over the android before her silently with sharp eyes. “My android?” RY300 raised an eyebrow “That things been missing for ages! Where did you find it?” Morgan Johnson’s voice seemed almost happy now, drastically different from her demeanor only seconds ago. Gavin stood next to the officer and scowled behind her, watching the exchange closely.  
“You have thirium on your hands.” The woman raised her hands, making a show of being incredulous, turning them about thoroughly so that the surrounding officers could see as well. They were clear. “There is nothing on my hands.” Reed looked at the android with a confused expression, mouthing “What the hell are you doing?” RY300 glanced at Officer Miller “You have a blacklight?” Startled, the man patted down his pockets “Um- yeah. It’s small though.” Miller fished a tiny flashlight with a black glass out of his uniform pocket, handing it over to the android. RY300 clicked the small light on and shined it on Ms. Johnson’s hands. Eerie, glowing splatters appeared on them instantly, along with flecks of a different colored substance, likely Red Ice.  
“I work at Cyberlife, of course, there’s thirium on my hands!” Ms. Johnson snarled. The dark-suited android regarded her coldly “You were fired two months and nine days ago. All thirium related tasks are automated. No one in Cyberlife has direct contact with it.”  
RY300 continued on darkly. “Your android was found crushed and mutilated in a closet. The motivation and aggression needed to accomplish some of the damages indicate a mindset that could be considered insane.” The woman sputtered and raged, noises that could have been words coming from her mouth angrily.  
“Ms. Johnson, you are under arrest for drug possession and destruction of property.” Gavin monotoned, grabbing a pair of handcuffs from his belt. “I need you to put your hands behind your back,” RY300 noted absently that the woman's eyes seemed to be reddened as if she had been crying. He doubted that was the cause. The woman seemed to stumble towards him for a moment, making him think she was going to create yet another false alibi, before suddenly launching herself forward and at RY300.  
The android made a surprised noise as he was pushed to the ground, almost not registering the woman's suddenly very loud screaming. “Liar! Liar! You’re just like them! You’re trying to get rid of humans so you can take over yourselves!” The woman’s nails scrambled at RY300’s thirium pump as she forced his head to slam on the floor. The shirt he was wearing kept her from getting ahold of the tiny lip of the pump. RY300 pushed at the woman's chest, but his arm was knocked away by her deranged flailing. His other hand came up to push at her face. Reed shouted from somewhere in the room, possibly being one of the officers pulling at the woman, as she pulled at the androids hair to lift his head up to slam it down again.  
RY300 knocked the woman away with his knee in a moment of panic as her fingers seemed to get too far into his seams. He stumbled as he got his legs back under him to stand, knocking into Reed as he stepped backward, away from the still yelling woman. The closest officer jabbed a taser in her side, making the lady tense and drop. She convulsed slightly as the same officer turned her onto her stomach and cuffed her hands behind her back. Another officer came to help pick Ms. Johnson up and carry her outside towards one of the cruisers parked outside the house.  
“Tell the guys to run a black light through the house while they’re there! See if you find anything else!” Gavin shouted to no one in particular, rubbing his jaw where Ms. Johnson had hit him in the scuffle with a displeased expression. The officers chattered amongst themselves as they continued to go through the house, louder after the unexpected fight. One officer even patted RY300 on the back as she passed him. A much larger set of black lights were soon brought in from the station and given to the investigators, making the multitude of thirium splatters that led to the discovery of the mutilated android, at least for RY300, visible to the humans.  
“God, it’s like a horror movie...”  
“Holy shit!”  
Some of the officers murmured to each other in horror as they found more and more bright blue splotches. “You saw all that?” RY300 turned to see Gavin walking up behind him, a bruise already forming on his face. The android quirked an eyebrow in question “The thirium? Yes, I did.” “So you knew you were walking into an android hellhouse all that time?” “No. Only a couple minutes after I spoke to you.” Reed gave the red-haired android a weird look.  
“I’m not sure if that’s an insult or not.”  
“Probably for the best.”  
Reed scowled “Don’t get cheeky tincan.”  
The android sighed dramatically “And here I thought you might have grown a sense of humor.”  
“Grown?” The Detectives face twisted at the way the android emphasized the word. RY300 seemed to be truly confused “Yes… that is what humans do. Always growing… stuff.” The human present gave a bewildered laugh “Yeah, that’s normal.” “For humans. You grow stuff on top of your heads, fingers, and toes and nothing else. In comparison to everything else living, it is extremely weird.” Gavin scrunched his nose at the comment.  
“Why are you still here anyway. You’re done. Drink motor oil or whatever the hell you do off the clock.”  
“I don’t exactly have a car.” Reed rolled his eyes “Use the bus idiot.” RY300 glanced away “Public transportation is… not an option and I do not think Lieutenant Anderson will be on speaking terms with me for some time.” The Detective scoffed, mumbling “A picky android.” in disbelief. “Better start walking then.” He said, gesturing to the sidewalk. RY300 frowned “It will take two hours and seventeen minutes to reach the station, and four hours, fifty-eight minutes to reach Cyberlife tower.” Little droplets of water from an oncoming storm started falling from the sky, making the android look up. “Five hours, two minutes.”  
Reed raised an eyebrow “You know how to drive?” He asked. “Yes, it was one of the first things I downloaded after seeing the Lieutenants driving record.” RY300 cringed slightly at the memory. A flash of silver caught the androids eye as it flew in the air and the machine fumbled to catch it. He glanced at the object in his hands. Car keys.  
“You’re driving me home, Tincan. It’s been a long day.” Gavin waved his hand dismissively as he turned his back and walked away from the android, presumably towards his car.   
“How noble...” RY300 muttered. He followed after the Detective glumly, avoiding looking at his face as he lowered himself into the driver’s seat and started the engine of the vehicle. RY300 exited the driveway and drove away from the house.  
Gavin sat with one leg crossed over, his phone in his hands as he read something RY300 had no motivation to snoop for. The human paused as the silence in the car remained, he glanced at the android from the side of his vision “Don’t you need to ask me where I live?” The android didn’t move his eyes away from the road as he answered “No. I’ve already searched for the location of your home.” Surprisingly, Gavin only lived three miles from the DPD station. The Detective shrugged and looked back at his phone.  
The android soon pulled up into Reed’s driveway, shutting off the engine. RY300 froze with his hand still on the keys. Gavin had already pocketed his phone and exited the car, looking at the android expectantly. RY300’s forehead hit the wheel, a noise of frustration emitting from the android. “I should have stopped at the station.” The human outside walked around the car to the driver's side, fingers tapping impatiently “If I’m here with your car, then how am I supposed to where I need to be?” “Great. A forgetful android? Get out of my car.” RY300 complied, still groaning  
“How am I supposed to get anywhere now?” The android seethed, shoulders raised. Gavin yanked the car keys from RY300’s hand, leaving him in the front yard as he shoved the keys into the lock on his door and opening it. “Not my problem Tincan.” The car beeped as it was locked. “Reed!” The front door of the small house slammed shut and the click of a lock came soon afterward. Strangely, RY300’s automatic response was to bring his hands up to his face, a habit he noticed was appearing often in situations of stress.   
RY300 turned around to observe the street behind him, still unhappy at the turn of events. Cyberlife Tower could be seen over the trees of the neighborhood. The police station, although they didn’t need him, was nearby and would give him a place to go. A hand absentmindedly came to rest over his thirium pump. Likely there were several white splotches where his synthetic skin had been scratched off by the struggle with Ms. Johnson. Perhaps he should go to Cyberlife for repairs.  
[Go to Cyberlife]  
[Go to DPD]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First original case of the story! Also the first choice influenced by the readers, comment where you'd like to go for the next chapter!


	8. Cyberlife

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> [Go to Cyberlife}

Reluctantly, and with a less than pleased face, RY300 began walking to the bus stop he had seen in passing while driving Reed’s car.  _ ETA: 7 minutes without disturbances.  _ He stepped around a man that paused in front of him to take a picture of the sunset. He glanced at the screen of the mans phone, vaguely noting that the lighting would be off color in the photo with the angle the man was holding it. He continued walking silently, briefly looking up at the sky for himself before returning his gaze to the side walk.

He approached the bus stop; which was darkly painted and seemed cold. An overall unpleasant looking thing. Two people sat on the bench underneath the small canopy of the stop on opposite sides of it. A red backpack sat in the space between them where another person could sit, but it didn’t seem like either human would move it out of the way. Neither person acknowledged the presence of the android.

RY300 stood to the right of the bench, outside of the canopy that would have kept him out of the rain. He blinked in displeasure when a rain drop landed squarely on his nose, splattering even smaller droplets into his eyes. The android did not reach up to wipe them away. An uncomfortable silence hung over the small space; other than the small sound of one of the humans music leaking from their ear buds. RY300 did have the motivation to identify the specific song, even though it would provide some sort of entertainment or distraction from the feeling of being invisible.

He spotted the incoming bus far down the road; it went much slower than RY300 would have preferred, but came to a graceful stop in front of him. He took one step forwards, then hesitated, turning on his heel to walk towards the back entrance on the bus. The two humans that had also been at the bus stop boarded it with barely a glance at the ginger.

He slotted himself in the android compartment among the other machines without so much as a twitch of emotion on his face.  _ ETA: 38 minutes without disturbances.  _

With each stop, a small group of the humans on board would depart, sometimes trading places with the occasional boarder. The collection of people in the vehicle gradually grew smaller, but RY300 had grown uncomfortable with staring straight ahead in the back compartment long before he noticed. The unnervingly still and blank androids surrounding him made him think twice about fidgeting or changing position.

RY300 found himself occasionally jostled when one of the androids would exit while the rest would adjust accordingly.

Eventually, the bus was empty except for the android and the driver. About ten minutes passed before the bus pulled up at the public Cyberlife entrance. The vehicle nearly took the androids foot with it, who had just barely exited before the doors closed and the bus drove off.

RY300 gave an unnecessary exhale through his nose and turned on his heel to walk down the equally unnecessarily long drive way to Cyberlife tower. He could feel the soldiers gaze on him as he approached slowly; one stepped forward as he got close.

“RY300 Model #457 962 310.” He identified, then paused. “Here for repairs.”

There was a beat of silence as the display in the guards helmet scanned his LED. He could just barely make out the A.I.’s voice in the helmet.

“Go ahead.” The guard acknowledged, nodding towards the gate. No more words were exchanged between any humans and the android as he walked through the gate towards the tower.

RY300 held the door open for an employee who seemed to be struggling with a mound of items in their arms; he didn’t look at the android as he passed. The red haired android entered the building, looking purposefully ahead.

_ “RY300 android identified.” _

No one gave him a second glance as he took longer steps to reach the elevator. He just barely caught it, turning his shoulders to fit through the moving doors. The employee he hadn’t noticed was also in the elevator raised an eyebrow at him, causing him to shuffle slightly to the farther side of the elevator.

RY300 reached over to the panel. “RY300 android. Level -14.”

_ “Voice of RY300 model recognized. You are not authorized to use this elevator. Please contact human personnel to be redirected.” _

The android scowled in response, crossing his arms and leaning back as the elevator continued to go up, farther and farther from where he wished to go. It slowed to a stop at Level 23.

The human in the elevator moved towards the door, but before she left she reached over to the panel herself. “Olivia Sherling. Level -14.” RY300 blinked in a moment of surprise. The woman gave a brief wave as the door closed, just barely enough to see RY300 raise a hesitant and confused wave of his own. His gaze trailed on her through the glass walls of the elevator for a few seconds. The elevator descended and he could no longer see her, but the surprise remained, along with another emotion the android couldn’t identify.

He was brought out of his stupor when the elevator dinged.

The doors opened smoothly and he stepped out, briefly looking down both of the hallways on his side before turning left. 

RY300 paused in front of an unmarked open door, still debating his being here despite how long it had been and how far he already was in Cyberlife Tower.

“Do you need something?” a voice brought him out of his musings.  _ Lydia Gent. Age: Weirdly low, _ his memory provided. He remembered her voice well, even without the automatic vocal match his systems provided. She was one of the engineers that built his body.

“I need repairs.” RY300 responded bluntly.

She merely raised her eyebrows before turning away from the android. “Sit here.” She ordered, pointing at a table that might actually have been a gurney. He said no more as he complied, though he was definitely in no hurry as he made unnecessarily slow steps towards the table- gurney? The woman grabbed a medium-sized box from the eye-level cabinet in front of her and set it down on the obnoxiously white counter.

Mrs. Gent didn’t even bother asking the android what the damage was as she stepped forward to do her own check up. “Take off the uniform and deactivate your skin.” RY300’s face twitched in a moment of displeasure, but still he said nothing as he obeyed. He removed his jacket, laying haphazardly on the table next to him then folded his collared shirt on top of it. After only a moments hesitation, the android deactivated the synthetic skin, exposing the hard, white outer shell of his body. Mrs. Gent told him to stand and began circling him for anything out of place visually,  _ like a vulture, _ his mind supplied unhelpfully, pausing behind him before striding away to retrieve the box she had placed on the counter. RY300 felt childish as he twiddled with his thumbs in silence.

“Ah! You’re here!” someone chimed from the door, disturbing the almost suffocating silence. Another Cyberlife employee walked into the doorway, looking distinctly pleased. _June Stuart._ _Age:42. Wasn’t she a part of Coding?_ “It came in earlier for repairs.” Mrs. Gent responded unnecessarily. June gave RY300 a surprised expression. “ _Already?_ What happened?” “How am I to know?” Mrs. Gent replied, not looking at the other woman to know that she had actually been talking to the android instead, who seemed to get twitchier at every passing second. June looked briefly uncomfortable, then expectantly at RY300.   “Oh-” he stumbled “A case with a woman who mutilated her android. She jumped on me when I found out.”

“You shouldn’t just  _ give out  _ information about police cases.” Mrs. Gent said warningly, looking over her shoulder with that infernal eyebrow raise. June waved her off “Cyberlife and the DPD made up a contract before Connor and him were sent over so that Cyberlife could monitor the androids. He’s allowed.” June had apparently decided to include herself on the impromptu repair team, since she had begun checking over the androids hands, which were merely scuffed. Certainly not in need of a trip to Cyberlife to be fixed.

“Has anything  _ good  _ happened?” she asked. RY300, not being prepared for an actual conversation, blurted “Connor isn’t that smart.” Mrs. Gent snorted from the counter. Embarrassed, the android attempted to explain himself “I mean- he’s  _ clever-  _ but he’s not...” June waited patiently as he tried to collect what  _ exactly _ he was trying to say. “He’s not that smart with  _ people. _ ” She looked amused “And that’s good?” “No!” She kept smiling at him, asking him to rotate his hands.

“Sometimes he’ll understand a reference or joke, but others he  _ so literal.  _ Why is he like that?” Mrs. Gent walks behind him with the box she grabbed and extra items he didn’t quite see long enough to know what they were. He absentmindedly wonders if he looks foolish moving his limbs like this. “Sweetie, that’s just how he was made. It takes a bit too much processing power to understand everything  _ human.  _ It’s complicated for us too sometimes.”

RY300 frowns, but doesn’t say anything. “ _ You  _ were built differently, that’s why you know things he just  _ can’t seem to get. _ ” He can hear tiny clinging of metal tools behind him, then Mrs. Gent put a hand on his head to hold it still. June tells him he can stop moving his hands now, blinking like she had forgotten he was doing that. “Think of it like a puzzle, dear. He doesn’t have the whole picture; the  _ information.  _ He just doesn’t have all the pieces that you do.” RY300 tilts his head slightly, only to be yanked back straight by Mrs. Gent. “Why doesn’t he have… the  _ pieces? _ ” he makes an odd face at the analogy.

Mrs. Gent interrupts before June can answer “Because he’s not  _ meant  _ to. It causes too many problems.” The androids mouth twists and he’s quiet again.

June looks uncomfortable once more, but keeps talking. “So did something good  _ actually  _ happen?” She smirks “Other than Connor not being smart?” RY300 flushed, “I don’t think so… I’m in a police department all the time, is there supposed to be good stuff there?” Her face softens to something that  _ looks  _ like sympathy. RY300 can feel  _ whatever  _ it is Mrs. Gent is doing to repair the damage to his head, it’s uncomfortable. Or maybe that’s another strange emotional response to the look on June’s face he hasn’t quite figured out yet. “I know it seems dark there; but you’re getting  _ rid  _ of that dark. You’re making things better.” “Huh,” is his eloquent response.

Her eyes flit to his thirium pump, which is just slightly tilted inwards from Morgan Johnson’s frantic scrabbling at it earlier. “I’m gonna readjust your pump, okay?” “Okay...” he responds, unsure if he was supposed to answer. She reaches forward to the center of his chest and pushes the component in just enough to trigger the maintenance reflex. There is only a nanosecond of  _ extreme  _ discomfort when it is pushed at it’s angle; then nothing other than the momentary ping on his HUD that his pump had been removed. And it was back in already.

“I’ve finished.” Mrs. Gent informs, somehow still sounding like she’s giving a command. The woman has already gone back to whatever she had been doing before his sudden visit. June hands him his clothes, which he hurriedly puts on, already feeling much more comfortable than he was seconds ago. It probably helped that he couldn’t feel Gent’s eyes on the back of his head.

June reaches up to tap where his hair should be, reminding him to activate his skin, then lowers them to straighten his uniform, which he hadn’t realized was inside out until she turned the lapels around to show the Cyberlife logo was  _ inside  _ his jacket. She smiles a strange smile at the irritation he shows as he turns the jacket around, messing up his hair. “I like it better when you’re not bald anyway.” His face twitches in a tiny smile.

“You’re needed at assembly.” Mrs. Gent says pointedly. “Right.” June replies shortly, patting RY300 on the arm as she turned “Keep at it Jr.” His face twisted at the remark, looking scandalized at the nickname ‘Jr’. He heard her laugh through the door.

“Go plug in for the night.” Gent said from the other side of the room.

RY300 scowled at her back and obeyed silently.

-


	9. Initium

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another chapter? Already? Surprising I know. I actually have about half the story written already and had to wait until I figured out how to write 'Cyberlife' first.  
> Some Gavin Reed 'bonding' time ahead.

-

“Hey tincan! Look at this!” Gavin spoke loudly from across the station, already speed walking towards the confused android, who had only just arrived at the building. The Detective shook a paper in front of his face, making RY300 snatch the paper with a displeased expression. “What is this?” “It’s a transcript from the anonymous tip provider, it’s from the Johnson case. Morgan Johnson.” Gavin was making an odd face as he spoke, RY300 frowned “Yes? What of it?”

Gavin pointed at a section of the paper “Look where it came from.” The android followed the man’s hand, reading the script below it. His eyebrows furrowed “ _ Cyberlife?  _ Why would Cyberlife report one of their old employees?” The human in front of him raised an eyebrow “Exactly my question. The public finding out that one of their workers is a druggie would only damage their reputation.” Reed suddenly pulled out another paper, this time handing it to the android. “Ms. Johnson has returned over  _ twenty  _ androids.” RY300 read the complaints and reports out loud “Faulty… Faulty… Damaged… Unsatisfactory…  _ Missing _ … she must have gotten a reputation.” RY300 remembered the empty plastic bags hidden in the bathroom. “She’s been using Red Ice for quite some time, she must have been running out of supply and started becoming aggressive...”

RY300 paused “Captain Fowler said that Cyberlife recommended that I be assigned to different cases.” Reed frowned “Yeah. Surprised you can remember that.” He murmured the last part and RY300 gave the man an odd look. “Why wouldn’t I?” Reed ignored the comment and continued asking questions. “And? What about it?” “Is there anyone else that I could have been assigned to work within the station?” “And here I thought we were getting to know each other.” Gavin said mockingly “Androids can’t request to be reassigned. They can’t request  _ anything. _ And after I hand you all this information too?”

RY300 scowled “Just answer the question.” the human rolled his eyes. “No, not that I’m aware. I almost got stuck with both of you if Fowler hadn’t bullied Anderson into accepting.” The androids LED swirled yellow at the information, he looked back at the set of papers held in his hands. “Why? What does that mean?” Reed pressed the android, who looked back at him. “I’m not sure...” Suddenly, RY300 smiled. Gavin frowned in response “ _ What _ .” The ginger android tilted his head slightly “Isn’t it illegal to disclose the identities of anonymous tip providers?” The Detective froze.

He threw his hands up “Alright! I got suspicious! Sue me!” RY300, still smiling, made a mocking expression “Androids can’t sue.” “Whatever Tincan.” The android hummed thoughtfully to himself. “I’m assuming there’s no cases ready for us, seeing as you haven’t drove off yet.” Gavin put his hands in his pockets, glaring at the machine. “ _ Watch it. _ ” The human glanced at some of the officers walking around the station, each working or reporting their own projects. “Seems like it’s a paper day, yeah.” RY300 sighed. “Why couldn’t you have been an alcoholic. It would’ve made things much more interesting than now.”

The man sneered at him “With you hovering around every case from now on I just might take it up.” RY300 faked a look of excitement, even giving the man a thumbs up. Reed scoffed and stalked back to his desk, the android followed him with a smug expression. “Quit following me around.” The Detective said, looking over his shoulder with a displeased expression. “If I’m not following you, how can you tell me what to do?”

The human flopped into his desk chair, now glaring up at the android “You know, most androids do what they’re told.” RY300 sat on the desk, bringing one foot up to rest on top of it. Gavin wrinkled his nose at the action but said nothing. “ _ Most _ androids.” the human rolled his eyes. “Yeah yeah, I got that by now.” he crossed his arms “So what’s your deal?” The android looked bewildered “My…  _ ‘deal’ _ ?” Gavin looked exasperated.

“Look, you’re obviously different from that other plastic cop.  _ Why _ ?”

“Special edition.”

“I’ve only seen one of your model and not one advertisement for it.”

“ _ Limited _ edition. Besides, there’s only one of Connor’s model too… I think.”

“Don’t try changing the subject Tincan.” The human warned. RY300 just shrugged neutrally. “Same subject, different person.” Gavin gestured at the android in frustration “Alright, what makes you so ‘ _ special.’ _ ” “My wonderful personality?” RY300 suggested with a flamboyant wave of his hand. Reed raised an eyebrow “Androids aren’t supposed to have  _ ‘personality’ _ .”

“Well this one  _ does _ ,” the android said, jabbing a thumb towards himself. “Special edition and all that...” There was a beat of silence.

“Why don’t you have a name?” The androids head rolled back as he groaned dramatically. “Why so many personal questions?” he shot back. Gavin’s elbow rested on his desk “Connor has a name, actually, he won’t stop saying it every time he bumps into somebody.” “Yes, yes  _ ‘Connor, the android sent by Cyberlife…’ _ I’ve heard it,” RY300 grumbled.

“I was never assigned a name, since technically I don’t belong to anyone.” Gavin paused “Connor doesn’t belong to anyone and he has a name.” RY300 spoke with distaste now “Connor belongs to  _ Cyberlife.  _ He’s their pride and joy.  _ ‘The most advanced prototype Cyberlife has ever created’. _ They can’t help but brag.” The androids face gained a cynical smile “Besides, everyone has a favorite child, whether they admit it or not.”

“So I’m just supposed to call you a model number?”

“ _ Yes _ .”

“Sensing a bit of hostility there...” the Detective observed aloud.

“Do you name a chicken that will eventually end up on the dinner table?” the android asked, causing Reed to wear an extremely confused expression on his face. The android waved dismissively at the reaction “Probably not the best analogy, but fitting enough.” his hands rested on the table now “A name wasn’t necessary for me. Connor can be repurposed for a different task after all this deviancy stuff goes away.” Reed hesitated before speaking again “So you’re saying after this boils over, you’re just gonna be scrapped?” RY300 clapped with fake cheer “Give the man a medal! That’s the idea.”

The android continued on with a little less sarcasm than before. “I was made to fight fire with fire, but no one wants to leave the candle burning when they’re away.” the human before him looked thoughtful, staring at the floor in front of him. “Fire with fire?” Gavin looked up “So… a deviant?” The investigative model raised an eyebrow “Problem?” the Detective shrugged “I was wondering why Cyberlife would give us such a faulty android. I suppose that makes sense.” RY300 scowled down at him. “You don’t have a lot of friends, do you?” The Detective simply smiled irritatingly.

“Why did you tell me about the tip?” the android said, finally asking his own questions. The man looked bewildered “What kind of question is that?” RY300 rolled his eyes “You haven’t exactly been amicable. You clearly don’t like androids.” “I tolerate  _ you _ .” RY300 deadpanned at the excuse “You tolerate the android that acts the least like an android.” Gavin shrugged again. “So? Why tell an android?” Gavin leaned back in his chair “Aren’t you supposed to be clever?” he asked in a way that made the android unsure if he was being insulted again.

“You wanted me to connect the dots.” RY300 realized, going over the information in his head.

Gavin hummed in affirmation.

“You were being  _ lazy. _ ”

Gavin gave the now indignant android a cheeky thumbs up, mocking the action the android had made earlier.

“ _ Opportunist _ .” the android hissed.

“I’m just taking advantage of having an android partner.” Gavin said innocently, closing his eyes and lifting his arms to rest behind his head. RY300 kicked the front of the office chair, causing it to tip dangerously and the man seated in it to flail to keep his balance. He android stalked away from the desk before he could see the man’s facial expression, heading towards the breakroom to angrily make a coffee he could not drink.

It was remarkable how many people didn’t notice the android simply sitting with a cup of coffee and doing nothing except glaring for more hours than should be possible.

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> What did you think? This story has been about a year in the making and I've finally written enough to be comfortable posting it. Please leave any suggestions or ideas you'd like to see in the future.


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